It Will Not End
by GeorginoschkaVincen
Summary: Charles is finally awake again and everything seems to be alright, but what about Stryker and his plans?What will happen if Erik and Charles get into his hands? And is the phoenix really gone? Sequel to 'Hate is never an option', Erik x Charles
1. Prologue

Hey yo! This is the sequel to 'Hate is never an option' ,so you should probably read it first before you start this story, to understand the basics ;)  
>To everyone else who has read 'Hate is never an option': welcome back ;D<strong><br>**I am (still xD) German, so please excuse my Grammar mistakes, thankies.  
>I used some (CIA) charas that I found in the x-comics for the CIA agents here, but I don't know them very well, so please don't be angry at me if I mess(ed) something up with them ^^"<p>

Ah,and; I've started another x-story+ I have school, so the updates might take some time, but I try to update as soon as possible ;)

Well, now, have fun ! :)

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

_20. October 1962, CIA-quarters._

The man stared at the screen, then he took the remote controller to rewind the video. He stared at the screen for several more minutes untill he stopped the video. Those freaks..They were even stronger than he had thought. They were a danger to the outside, but at the same time they were an important source of information. Those powers were strong and could be used for everything.

"Do you know those men, sir?" the agent asked, his eyes on him.

"Oh, yes, I do." Stryker leaned back as he eyed the two men on the screen, then he turned around the face the agent who brought him the video "And you are sure that this video is real?"

"Totally sure, sir!" the man answered, his voice serious "Officer Bader's team made it two weeks ago."

"Hmm.." Stryker nodded thoughtfully. He could count on Sherman's men, they were trustworthy and loyal, they would not dare to fake a video. Anyway, how would they've been able to face such a video? This was fare too enormous to be faked.

"So, what are we going to do about them, sir?" The agent was young, maybe twenty-five, and eager to solve a mission. Stryker was not sure if the agent knew what exactly was to be seen on the video, but he really did not care. He probably knew, Stryker could tell it by the way he spoke. The agent seemed to be interested in the subject and that that was understandable; who wouldn't be interested in freaks with superpowers? He must feel like a little boy who was about to discover something big and important for his nation.

"Tell Sherman that he shall continue to build the cells, and someone shall call doctor Teed." the older man crossed his arms behind his back and turned back to the monitor on the table. His eyes narrowed "Tell them that I want to meet them, to discuss further steps." he paused "I assume Sherman saw the video already?"

The agent nodded, even if Stryker could not see him "Yes, sir!"

"Okay, then you can leave now." Stryker hummed satisfied. "Oh, and call Thorton as well. I am sure he will be more than interested."

"Yes,sir!" the man saluted and hurried off.

Professor Thorton was civilian advisor to the American military also known simply as the Professor. He was the man who had started their project weapon x and Stryker was sure that he would be interested in some new freaks.

"Xavier.." Stryker hissed as he sat down on the revolving chair in front of the screen. He had known from the start that this man was a danger to the outside world, but of course none of his colleagues had listened to him.

He leaned forward and eyed the other man on the screen. Lehnsherr was his name, Erik Lehnsherr. Stryker had heard about him, he was one of the Xavier's friends and had stayed with the blue eyed man and the teenage freaks in the CIA-quarters to search for more of their kind. A freak as well. The gray-haired man leaned back in his chair and started the video again. The high flames and the destructive power could be seen very well on the small screen. The video had been made by man of the CIA, up from the air, probably from one of the helicopters. "Incredible.." he mumbled as he watched a whole tree disappear into dust.

Who would have thought that the young professor was capable to do something like this? Hah,but that just showed how dangerous those mutants were; even those who looked like humans were nowhere near humane.

He was disgusted, but at the same time his interest grew; he wanted to study them, he wanted to know what they were able to do. Maybe they could also serve the goverment. They could be used as weapons and for experiments, and he was sure they could use them for medical tests as well. Who cared about the health of those freaks? They just needed to find a way to break their spirit, a way to control those monsters.

Even if they were dangerous the CIA wouldn't tell the public about the freaks. It would only cause them to panic and would lead to nothing. And if that wouldn't work then there was still the option to kill them all and that with the powers of one single freak.

There were so many things they could do with them, and so many things they could use them for. They were a good resource,oh yes, they were, and he could wait to use them. But, he had to wait. They had to plan things, and the base at the Alkali Lake was not completly ready yet. They needed to rebuild the cerebro thing, the big machine that McCoy had built, and for that they would need McCoy again. They had the basics of the machine and technically they were able to rebuild it, but better safe than sorry. It would not be difficult to find the smart kid, Stryker was sure he was he was still with Xavier.

The telepath... He was the key to their plan. With help of his telepathy and cerebro they would be able to find every damn freak on the world!

He grinned at the thought of the cells, full of mutants. Oh,and he would have fun to wipe this arrogant smile of the telepath's face. He had never liked him; he had been annoying, always smiling and trying to help those of his kind, those damn freaks. But, soon this would change. Oh yes, Wiliam Stryker senior was sure of that. Finally he would show them who was in control!

They just needed a good plan to get those freaks.

...

_13. November 1962, Xavier Mansion_

It was late at night as Erik Lehnsherr suddenly jolted up in his bed, his eyes wide as he scanned his room, which was dark, illuminated by the grayish blue light that shone through the window. It must be somewhere around three or four o'clock in the morning. Erik was alone in his room,but he had been sure that he had heard someone speaking. It was then that a soft whisper touched his mind again.

_...Erik..? _

The voice was weak, barely a soft whisper against his mind.

With one jump he was out of his bed and down the corridor, his heart hammering in his chest. Charles! It was Charles! Finally..

_I can hear you, Charles! Wait, I am coming!_

His bar feet his bare feet slithered over the polished wooden floor as he hastily walked down the stairs towards the lab. He must have been louder than he had thought, because he could hear a door open. "Who ever you are, it is late at night!" It was Raven's annoyed voice.

Erik didn't answer her, he was to busy with being nervous and thrilled at the same time; finally, finally Charles was awake! It had been over a month now that Charles had been unconscious,lost in his mind, fighting with the phoenix and his own mind. But now he was back and Erik's heart raced wildly, every cell of is body itching to see the telepath awake.

He stopped in front of the metal doors of the lab, breathing heavily as he stared at the door. This door separated him from Charles, he just had to open this door and he would finally see the telepath's blue eyes again.

A cold shiver ran down his back at this thought of Charles' eyes, because he realized that it maybe was not Charles who would greet him in this room; maybe this would be the phoenix with his fire red eyes and his venomous smile.

All of sudden Erik felt very sick in the stomach, and his hand tightened around the door handle. There was no other option; he had to open the door and face whomever he would meet there. If it was Charles, or the phoenix, in the end he had to open the door anyway, because if he wouldn't do it, someone else would.

Every fibre of his being hoped that it would not be the phoenix who was back with them. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself as he ignore the soft presence of the others mind in the back of his head, then he pushed down the door handle.

The first thing he saw was the blinding light of the garish lab lamps and he had to shield his sensetiv eyes with his hands because they had been used to the darkness in the rest of the house.

Slowly his eyes became used to the light and he dared to take some steps towards the bed.

"Erik." Charles' voice was hoarse due the lack of drinking liquids and the lack of speaking, but it was soft, though a bit unsure. Erik took away the hand over his eyes and slowly looked up at the man on the bed.

His breath stuck in his throat as he looked into the eyes of the telepath.

First, he just saw the red gleam, and his heart began to sink, but then he noticed that there was something different; it was just one eye that was red, while the other was a brilliant blue.

He had no clue what that meant.

"Hello, Charles." he breathed, not sure what else to say.

He just hoped it was Charles.


	2. Chapter 1: A Call

Sorry for the late update^^ I told you, I am a busy lab rat..*sigh*. Well, Next update should be up in 1-1/2 week(s), though I can't promise anything.  
>Annndd, thankies for the reviews, favs and allerts :) !<strong><br>**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

_16. January 1963, Xavier Mansion_

It was around ten o'clock, later morning, and the breakfast had already begun, but the young man in front of the mirror couldn't quite bring himself to go down just yet.

He had one of these days; those days where he doubted his appearance.

Two different colored eyes stared back at him. He stood there, gazing at the bright color of those eyes, then he sighed. He narrowed his eyes, glaring at his mirror-image as if he was angry at himself, but in truth he was just focusing. There he stood for several minutes, just glaring at his mirror image.

Meanwhile, books and clothes flew through the air, putting themselves in their right place, while the light blue shirt he wore buttoned up itself. His a bit too long hair was brushed by a hairbrush. He was just half aware of what happened around him because he was used to his telekinesis already. The most important problem was his left eye. He knew, the others weren't bothered by its red color, but the telepath couldn't help but feel weird. He did not want to have a red eye. Maybe that was how Raven must have felt months ago, bothered by her own apperance, even if it was her true self. But, this time it was different.

This was not Charles' true self, this was a remnant of the phoenix.

He hated it.

To be true, he could not remember much of what had happened in the time the phoenix had been active. There were just fragments, but most of his memories were like ...gone. Even Shaw's death was like erased from his memory... Erik had told him a lot, of what had happened, but Charles could not remember one bit. Maybe it was better this way.

He leaned closer to the mirror, his eyes widened now, gazing into his own different colored eyes and began form a simple illusion. From one minute to the other his red eye became a brilliant blue, matching his right eye perfectly.

Charles leaned back again, eyeing himself with a critical expression on his face. He still was not satisfied. For him, there was still the red eye under the blue hue, always present, as if to mock him.

He could not trick his own mind. He could probably not even trick the minds of the others. Of course, he could built a perfect illusion of a blue eye, but then he would have to be in their minds, all the time, to tell them that both of his eyes were blue, not multicolored.

He had always liked his blue eyes. Maybe he was arrogant, but he had considered them as special, but now he felt.. how? Deformed? No, it was not that horrible. Well, of course it somewhat was, for him, his ego, but not as horrible as injuries or scars of others, for example.

It could have been worse. He could be dead, but he was alive. Erik had told him that he had been in a coma for almost over an month, and that they all had feared he would never come back to them.

But, here he was, among them, and all he could think of was self pity for his new appearance? He should be more greatful, to whom or whatever brought him back. There were other things to do than to worry about a stupid, red eye.

He was still able to see with the eye, so where was the problem? Charles pressed his lips together, staring at his mirror image, which stared grimly back at him. He could still use an eyepatch. Hank had made him one, but he would rather not look like a pirate, even if it would be better to wear it in public. The last thing he wanted was an old lady to faint because she thought he was a devil. But, there was still the option of an illusion..

"A frown dose not suit you, Charles. "

Charles flinched slightly as he swirled around in surprise. He hadn't been aware of Erik until he had spoken up.

The metal-bender stood in the doorway, his arms crossed in front of his chest, eyeing Charles with a amused grin. This grin, however, turned into a frown as well as he saw Charles' face. "Still trying to cover your little problem?" he asked, gesturing at his left eye.

Charles sighed as he ran a hand through his wavy hair, rolling his eyes as his illusion began to fade, letting Erik see his red eye again. "Satisfied?" he murmured, not really happy. He had been in Erik's head, creating the illusion, without noticing it. _Maybe I should train my control again_, the telepath mused to himself. It was true, he had gotten a bit incautious when it came to his powers.

The books and clothes, which were still on their way to their right place, dropped back to the floor as Charles lifted his eyes to look at Erik, who eyed him with an rather stern expression. "You still don't accept it, don't you?" the older man asked, his voice softer than the expression on his face. Charles knew that Erik was still wary about his powers, about the telekinesis, especially after Charles' coma.

They all feared the phoenix, Erik and Charles probably the most. They both never spoke about it, but Charles could feel the tension in the air when Erik was around him while he used his telekinesis.

"No, not quite yet.." Charles admitted as he smoothed down his shirt, his fingers playing with the top button of his shirt. Was he ashamed? Maybe, for acting so stupid. Erik took some long strides till he was in front of Charles, then he carefully laid his hand on the telepath's shoulder, gently smiling down on him "You shouldn't worry too much about it, Charles. You are beautiful, you know? Just the way you are."

He knew those words meant to comfort him, but they didn't. He just felt even more stupid, like a child searching for affection. He didn't want their pity, or their nice words. He knew they all meant to make him feel better, but they didn't.

He wanted to accept himself because he himself wanted to accept himself, not because the others told him to do so. The problem was he himself, not the others. And he already was annoyed of himself for being so self-centeredness and stubborn.

And so Charles gave his friend, boyfriend, a small smile, but it was just a half-hearted smile. "It is not the apperance.." he said, though it was a bit of a lie, because it bothered him as well "It is because of what it reminds me of."

They both stood there in silence for mere minutes, neither of them sure what to say next. Charles could feel the sympathy of Erik.

It would always remind him, but there was nothing to change it. It was over, the phoenix was gone for now, and that was the most important fact.

Charles took a deep breath, leaning his forehead against Erik's chest. He could smell Erik's scent, reminding him of mint and the smell of fresh fallen leaves. He loved Erik's scent; it always managed to calm him down somehow.

"Hey, you two lovebirds! If you don't hurry Sean and Alex will eat everything on their own!" They both winced as Raven's voice was heared through the whole hallway.

"Your dear sister is probably right." Erik chuckled , and Charles leaned back. "I know." he hummed, grimacing. He had wanted to stay here with Erik, to be honest, but his stomach growled.

Erik tugged Charles' hair behind his ears, studying his face as his thumb brushed over the younger man's cheek "Let's hurry." he sighed, but added thoughtfully "Though, as far as I know those boys I am sure they've eaten most of the breakfast anyway."

The morning went by surprisingly fast. Charles found himself sitting at the kitchen table, a cup of tea in his hand, gazing out of the window, lost in thoughts. The day was foggy, cold, and it was snowing slightly.

Almost two months had passed since he had woken from his coma. Nothing special had happened, but Charles thoughts wandered to the kids and Erik.

Raven was working in a cafe now, sometimes, to " get my own money." , as she would say. She was there today as well and would probably come back later in the afternoon. The job did her good and she had even found some new friends there. Though, of course she had to hide her own apperance.

Sean and Alex were the same as always; loud and sometimes really hard to handle. But the boys had found some new activities. Alex had joined a football team, and Sean was interested in art. Still they both were almost inseparable, spending a lot of time together.

Hank was still the lab nerd. Most of the time he was in the lab or in the libary of the mansion, even Charles was not sure what exactly the boy was doing all the time, but Hank was fine. If he wasn't in the lab, he was with Raven. Currently, he and Charles both worked at the outlines of the Danger Room, and the new Cerebro was almost ready.

Charles dream was to open up a school some day, but not now. Maybe in one year or two. After all, such a school had to be well planned.

The telepath sighed as he took another sip of his tea, the fingers of his right hand drumming on the table.

Then there was Erik.

Erik was always worried about him, about his mental condition. It was almost cute, but it was also really exhausting. Charles knew that the metal-bender was just afraid to lose him, and he could understand Erik's worry, but he was not made of glas; he could handle his current situation, he was okay with it. His mental shields were not as strong as before, but strong enough to keep others out of his head, as well as the phoenix. In fact, the phoenix was burried deep inside his mind and it would probably take some time till it would show up again, and maybe, maybe, they would have found a way to get rid of it forever by then.

The phone rang, and Charles head turned to the kitchen door. _"Erik, will you answer the phone, or shall I...?" _he mentally asked. It took mere minutes till Erik answered _"Nah,I am upstairs with Hank, working on Cerebro. You'll have to go."_

Charles sighed, nodding, though Erik couldn't see it anyway. He had forgotten that Erik was helping Hank with the placing of the metal plates for Cerebro.

"One moment, please." he shouted, even if ithe person at the other end of the line wasn't able to hear him, hurrying towards phone. Who could it be? Maybe one of Raven's friends? "Charles Xavier, may I help?" He placed the phone between his shoulder and his head,a notepad and a pencil in his hands, ready to write down anything he was told, a beaming smile on his lips.

"Hello, Mr. Xavier." a dark and sympathetic male voice spoke. Charles had never heard this voice before. "My name is Jonathan Sherman. I am a colleague of William Stryker. Do you have some time for a talk?"

"Agent..Stryker?" was the first thing he asked, not able to hide the surprise in his voice. Stryker, the CIA-agent which had been leery from the start...

"Yes," Sherman answered, his voice polite but with a cold hint. "We have some questions for you and your friend.." a pause, the rustle of papers could be heard "Erik Lehnsherr."

Charles' tongue darted forward, licking over his lips, as always when he was nervous "May I ask why, and what questions?"

A bad feeling began to form in his stomach, though he was not sure why. There was nothing he had to fear. They had done nothing wrong and no one of the humans knew about the phoenix and about what had happened the night Shaw had died.

_"Who is it?"_ Charles could hear Erik ask while he stared at the notepad in his hand. "_A man named Jonathan Sherman."_he answered quietly, his tongue licking over his lips again. _"The CIA.." _He could feel Erik's surprise and anger. Their mental bond had grown stronger since the time with the phoenix, and Charles flinched slightly as the wave of Erik's anger rolled over him.

_"What do they want?"_

He could not answer, because Mr. Sherman began to speak "Don't worry, Mr. Xavier. We just have some questions about mutants, and about what you and Mr. Lehnsherr are about to do with the children that live at your side. As far I've heard you've trained them for a war against a certain man.." Moira..They must have gotten their information from her, there was no other option. Charles could not tell if she was working together with those men, or if she had been forced to answer their questions. He wished it wasn't because of her, because he had always considered her as trustworthy and friendly.. "I just want to get sure that everything is alright." Sherman said, almost purring "That's not to much to ask, isn't it? It's about our all safety."

Charles' grip around the pencil tightened slightly. "Of course.."

_"Charles? Hey! "_ Erik's voice rang in his head, alarmed because he felt Charles' tension. "_Everything alright?"  
><em>

Charles rubbed his forehead. _"He said they want to talk with us..." _he mumbled. He could hear Erik's mental snort _"Sure."_ he hissed _"It couldn't be more obvious!"_

_"I know, Erik!"_ Charles snapped, tetchy because he had to talk to two persons at the same time_,_ which was really taxing._"But we can't just turn down their plea! They might know something, we can not risk anything!"_

Sherman seemed to wonder about the silence, because he spoke up again "Now, Mr. Xavier?" Charles cleared his throat. He was still able to hear Erik's mumbling in the back of his head, but he had to focus on Sherman now. "I think I should talk with Erik. Together we will decide what to do, and I will call you as soon as we have chosen our answer."

There was a pause at the other end of the line, and Charles was about to speak up as Sherman answered "Oh, no. That's not necessary, Mr. Xavier." another short pause, and Charles was almost sure that the other man was grinning as he said "Have a nice day." He was not able to answer; Sherman hung up the phone before Charles was even able to open his mouth. Charles stood there, taking the phone and hung it off. "A nice day as well.." he mumbled.

"Charles?" Charles looked up as Erik walked down the stairs, giving him an questioning gaze "What have you told him?"

Charles took a deep breath through his nose and leaned back against the wall. "Nothing. I told him that I would want to talk with you before I make any decision on my own."

Erik stopped in front of him, looking down on him thoughtfully "And, what was his answer?"

Charles looked past Erik, his brow furrowed as he thought about what Sherman had said "Well, there was no real answer.." he said, slowly. "I told him that we would call him back, but he said it is okay and then he hung up.

Erik growled in discomfort as he shook his head "They're planning something, Charles." Charles closed his eyes and nodded slowly "I know.." he mumbled. The grayish light from outside shone through the window down at them and Charles could almost feel the small rays of sunlight on his skin.

"So, what will you do?" Erik asked, still watching Charles, who had his eyes firmly closed, lost in his thoughts.

It took several minutes until Charles opened his mismatched eyes again, this time looking straight into Erik's. "There is nothing I could do." he admitted "I don't have their phone number, neither their adress."

"Great.." Erik sighed, crossing his arms in front of his chest as he looked down on Charles, who squirmed slightly under the metal-bender's gaze. "Let's just hope they forget about us." the telepath mumbled, not really convinced by himself.

Of course they would not. Charles was sure that they would call again. And there was something about Sherman that he could not quite place.. "Hey, Charles." Erik took his face into his hands "You're frowning again."

Charles smiled weakly; he knew that Erik thought as much about the CIA at the moment as he did, but still he tried not to show it. "What about Cerebro?" Charles asked instead, because they both needed a change of topic. They would think about the CIA later anyway, and he knew that later they would discuss about their option. Later, when they were alone in one of their rooms, playing chess. It always ended with discussing while playing chess.

"We're still not completely done." Erik answered, then he tilted his head to the side, eyeing Charles with interest in his eyes. "Would you be able to locate Sherman with Cerebro?"

Charles shook his head. " I am able to locate people whose mind I've touched, but I am not sure if I would be able to find Sherman. I don't even know what he looks like; It would be like searching in a crowd without knowing him, so there is no point in trying."

Erik nodded, his face stern. He was worried, Charles could easily tell it by the way he looked at him. Erik had never trusted the humans, and it only had gotten worse since Moira had left them. He thought that she had betrayed them, and now he was afraid that Moira could have told the CIA everything she knew.

Charles was not sure, but he tried to believe that Moira would never do something like that; she might had been afraid, but she was not stupid. She wouldn't betray them, that was not like her.

He could remeber that she had liked him a lot, back then when they had been together at the CIA-quarters, and he could just hoped that their friendship was more important to her than what the others of the CIA could want from her.

"Don't worry, Erik." Charles smiled up at him "There is nothing they could do to us." Erik did not smile in return. In fact, his face just darkened "You say that, but I know better."

Charles smile faded, and he furrowed his brow "I know what you fear, Erik, but it won't be like it had been before. The humans have changed, and this time there completely different conditions .."

"I know how it all starts!" Erik hissed, his eyes narrowed "Don't you think I can judge this better than you? **I** had been imprisoned once before, and believe me, I never want to be treated like that ever again!" Erik was angry, but most of all he was afraid. Charles could understand his fear, but maybe he couldn't understand it as much as he thought... No one could imagine the terror and violence that Erik had gone through. The time in the camps must have been horrible, and it was only natural that Erik feared every action against them which could possibly lead to their imprisonment by the humans. Still Charles refused to believe that this would or could happen- again.

"They just want to talk.." Charles tried to calm him down, but Erik just gave him a snort "Yeah,sure. They always just want to talk.."

There was tension in the air, and they stood there in the corridor for several minutes, neither of them saying a word. "Please.." Charles then sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose with two fingers "I don't want to fight about this topic now..We both now that it would lead to nothing at all.."

Erik looked at him as if he was about to say something, though he stayed calm and nodded. "Okay.."he almost whispered, suddenly looking tired. They both were tired of fighting about the same topic over and over again, but it was unavoidable..

"Would you like some tea?" Charles asked, as they both walked down the corridor. Erik looked as if he was pondering. "Actually I should continue to help Hank." he began,slowly, but hastily added "But, one cup will be alright." as he saw Charles' disappointed face.

Charles' face lit up; he had known that the sad face would convince Erik to stay with him for some more time. That might sound a bit rude, but he just wanted to spend a bit time with his boyfriend.

"But-" Erik said, as they walked into the kitchen "I want a coffee, not a tea. I still don't like that colored water with milk.."

Charles chuckled as he took two cups out of the cupboard "I am afraid, my friend-" he placed the cups down on the counter "- that there is no Coffee left." he turned to Erik, who stared at him with disbelief in his eyes. "Sean had probably had the last one."

Erik's knuckles cracked dangerously "Someday I'll kill that boy." he muttered. "He always eats everything that I like, and now he also stole my coffe." Charles laughed out, because Erik was almost pouting like a child whose favorite candy had been taken away, out of its reach. "Well, you have to drink a cup of tea, then."

Erik rolled his eyes and sat down at the table. "Never. I prefer water."

Charles raised one eyebrow as he put the teapot on the stove. "Didn't you just say that tea is colored water?"

Erik raised his chin "Tz, does it matter?Tea is tea, water is water." Charles laughed out and shook his head.

"Sometimes I don't understand you, Erik."

"Well.." Erik mumbled as he placed his chin on his folded hands. "Don't worry, me neither."

They stayed in the kitchen for one hour until they both went back to their work, the CIA long forgotten.

If they just would have done something about Sherman.

If they just would have agreed to meet him.

Maybe the CIA wouldn't be on their way to the mansion then...

But, who can tell what could have been?

...


	3. Chapter 2: Being Chased

Hey hey. So,here is another chappy. Thanks for the reviews, guys :) + thanks for waiting so patiently for my updates ^^"  
>Okay, so, next upadte (probably) in 1 - 1 12 week(s).**  
><strong>

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

Alex Summers was a boy who was, technically, always hungry; and that every hour of the day - and night.

This was why the blonde boy was down in the kitchen, searching for something eatable. It was late at night, around three o'clock, and the teenager had woken because of his growling stomach. Had to be the growth.

The big fridge contained an amount of food, therefore it was a difficult decision for the boy to choose something. The teenager sighed, leaning against the door of the fridge, if Charles was here he would give him an stern glance, and eyed the content of the fridge with furrowed brows. He then took the sausage. He was about to take a plate as he noticed that something was moving outside.

The boy walked to the window, narrowing his eyes because he could hardly see anything outside, except for some outlines and the darkness, of course. But, yes, there was something moving. Yeah, there was someone! And not only someone; this was a group!

Alex Summers was, maybe, not the smartest of all guys, but he was sure that normally a group of so many people wasn't walking around late at night, especially not on a private ground. There was something going on!

He hurried down the hallway, his eyes fixed on the main door. He had to wann the others!

Then he could heard them; they were at the door!

_Professor!, _the blonde mutant shouted via mind, _Professor, there is someone trying to break into the house!_

And then, suddenly, the door burst open with a loud crack and Alex found himself standing in the light of a headlight while several guns were directed at him. He stood there in shock, unable to move. He had to warn the others before it was too late!

_Professor!, _he screamed with all his mental power, _They're attacking us!_

_.._

Charles was lying in the big double bed, snuggled up against Erik, dreaming about the school he would lead in the future. He stirred slightly in his sleep as he heard some noise downstairs. He had never been someone who had a deep sleep, and so he found himself awake as he heard someone mentally screaming for him.

_"Professor! They're attacking us!"_

Charles rubbed his eyes, still a bit sleepy, sitting up. It had been Alex who had called him. Maybe the boy had had a bad dream? _Alex, what's the matter?_

_"Professor, you have to warn the others, there are guys in the mansion, and they- argh!" _The connection to the boy was cut off, and Charles found himself panicking. _Alex! Alex!_

The boy did not answer, and Charles jumped out of the bed. "Charles?" Erik mumbled, confused because Charles wasn't at his side anymore. He rolled onto his side, looking up at Charles. "Shh!" Charles eyes were wide as he searched for the presence of other minds. "There is someone in the house! They've shot Alex..." He found none; there were no other minds! That was impossible! But, what if..

"Charles, what are you talking about?" Erik sat up, rubbing his face with one hand. "Maybe you had a nightmare.." Charles shook his head, his fingers pressed to his temple, his missmatched eyes staring ahead. "No,nono, I can't feel Alex' mind anymore! We have to warn the others!" And, yes, now they could hear someone moving around in the lower floor.

Charles paled immediately, his white skin illuminated by the dim moonlight which shone through the big window. "Oh god!" he breathed, his left hand pressed against his mouth. Erik was out of the bed in mere minutes, walking towards the door with long strides. "Erik!" Charles whispered emphatically "What are you doing!"

Erik turned around to him, his eyes narrowed "I'm going downstairs and search for Alex. The boy is still down there!"

"I knowww!" Charles hissed. "But, are you mad! You don't even know who it is! We should make a plan and-" Erik's face darkened, and he was almost melting with the shadows of the room, eyes reflecting the moonlight like two mirrors. He looked almost like a devil..."Oh,I think I perfectly know WHO this is." he hissed back, his anger not directed at Charles but at the men downstairs. "And, no; there is no time for a plan! We have to act before it is too late!"

Too late...That would mean Alex' death, or their imprisonment, maybe even their own death...But,somehow Charles doubted that they would be killed; not if it really was the CIA, or at least the part of the CIA that belong to Stryker and 'his friends', who attacked them...

Charles hands left hand tightened into a fist, and he shook his head "No,Erik, you can't face them all alone!" Erik just turned around, his hand on the door handle "There is no other option! If it is who I think it is...Charles, you have to flee with the kids! I will follow,... with Alex."

He could hear Charles dry laughter "Oh, sure!" Charles walked up to him as he spoke "I will not let you do this alone, I won't leave you alone! I will help you to get Alex! My telepathy does not affect them, but my telekinesis would help and we-"

Erik turned around, anger in his eyes as he pointed with his index finger at Charles "They need you! They're just kids, they wouldn't know where to hide! You have to lead them out of here, that's your task!"

Charles knew why Erik thought so; it was because Erik had more practical knowledge about fighting against soliders, and probably even about fighting in any case. He probably thought that Charles was too inexperienced with this subject, but maybe he was just worried that his boyfriend would get killed. Or, maybe he feared that his boyfriend would loose control and would kill all of them instead, including Erik and the kids. Charles could understand his worry, but he wouldn't accept it.

The telepath shook his head, his eyes bright with concern, his face stern "No, Raven would know where to go..."

Erik just snarled while he opened the door, and then Charles could not say anything else, because Erik was already out of the door.

He could stop him. He could stop him, could force him to hide with them, but he would not. He had promised Erik to never do something like that, and he had promised himself to never use his powers against his friends, especially not against his boyfriend. That was why he pressed his lips together and began to wake the others. _Hank,Raven, Sean; wake up! We meet at the end of the corridor, near the big window, the one that leads to the yard. Now!_

_"What's the matter, Charles?" _Raven asked, her voice sleepy. Charles walked down to the window as he mentally answered his sister. _Someone is in the house, and Erik assumes that it is the CIA. We have to hide somewhere, because a fight is no option._

He could almost hear Raven's gasp _"What? What are they doing here-"_

_"Prof; what's the matter?"_ Sean joined the talk, and after also Hank. _"May I ask why we have to wake up? It is late at night and-"_

Charles groaned, rubbing his forehead with his hand. He just reached the window as he told them with his a stern voice, _Just do what I say, at least this time! This is about our lifes, so I want you to listen to what I tell you!_

The kids were quiet after that, and after mere minutes he could see a figure walking towards him. He could sensed Raven more than that he could see her in the darkness of the corridor, and soon Sean and Hank followed. They walked on their tiptoes, their shoulders hunched as if their feared that someone would see or follow them. Well, this fear was justified...

"What is going on here?" Raven asked in a harsh whisper, her yellow eyes gleaming like the eyes of a cat and her white nightshirt made her look like a ghost.

Rumbling could be heard, and the teenagers winced. "I already told you-" Charles answered, as he opened the big window as carefully as he could, trying not to make a sound which could lead the intruders to them. "- the CIA is probably on the hunt for ..us.." Cold air hit his face and his bare arms, and he shivered slightly. It was snowing.

The eyes of the teenagers went wide, and Hank actually growled "But, why?" Charles sighed stepping aside from the window, his eyes upon the teenagers. "I don't know..." This was no lie, but he could imagine all to well what they could want from them..Or, better; with them.

"Can't you just freez them?" Sean asked, as he took a frightened look around, as if he feared that masked men would jump out of the shadows to attack them. "Anyway; where is Alex? And..Where is Magneto?"

Charles furrowed his brow as he heard Erik's nickname. It had been quite a while since the teenagers had called the men by their 'mutant names'. "I'll tell you later." he assured, though he probably wouldn't. "For now,all that matters is that we get out of here."

"But-" Raven started, her brows puckered. "- this is our home! They..They can't just take it from us!"

Charles took a deep breath through his nose, trying to stay calm. Raven was right, but what else could they do now? A fight was no option. Someone could die, and the CIA would notice if their agents went missing after their mission to catch the mutants, and that would lead to even more problems. No matter which way Charles tried, they would always end in being forced to leave the mansion.

"I am sure we will be able to go back here as soon as things are settled. For now we have to leave!"

Footsteps could be heared, and the teeangers began to shiver, their gazes directed at the long, dark corridor. The moonlight shone through the three windows, though it was pale and dim because the clouds swallowed most of the light.

"Okay, now,listen to me!" Charles whispered, leaning forward "We will climb down the ivy vines. As soon as we managed that we'll try to get to the garage. My car is there, though we will have to break it to get in." His wonderful car..Well, he there were more important things than the condition that his car would be in. "We will wait there for Erik and Alex, and after that we'll leave. I think we'll drive to the holiday home of ours." his gaze wandered to Raven "The one at the sea."

"I can go first." Hank offered "I just have to jump down, and after that I can catch you."

Charles gave the blue mutant a nod, then he pointed at the window "Now." he whispered, his mismatched eyes flickering to the long shadows of the hallway. The footsteps were getting closer. Hank was out of the window in mere seconds, and a soft thud could be heard as the boy landed in the snow.

"Hurry now!" Charles urged. "Sean, you are the next." Sean, who had had a bad experience with jumping out of windows, grimaced; he would probably like to fly, but for that he would have to scream, and that wouldn't be helpful now. The red-haired gulped, than he climbed onto the window sill. Mere seconds later he disappeared in the darkness of the night.

Raven was the next. She gave her brother a quick glance, and for one moment she seemed to hasitate, but then she climbed on to the window sill, taking a deep breath as she turned her head to him, her face serious "Be careful." she whispered, than she jumped as well.

It was weird; she was no telepath, but sometimes she seemed to exactly know what he was about to do.

"Thank you." he whispered into the darkness, then he hastily hurried down the corridor

...

Erik hurried down the dark corridor, his sense searching for any metal around. It was easy to locate the men; their suits had a lot of metal, the small buttons on the trousers, for example, or the buckles of their boots. Though, he could feel no metal of their weapon, and that confused him quite a bit; what kind of weapons did they have, if not guns?

Erik had luck; he met no one on the corridor, and made it to the stairs, but then he nearly ran into two soliders, both wearing black suits and helmets with visors. They had guns in their hand, and Erik realized that the guns must have been made of plastic, because he still could not sense them.

The men seemed as surprised as he was, and so he had an advantage; he grabbed the men by their arms, yanking them around and into the next best room. After that, he deformed the door handle, nearly melting it. That would keep them busy for a while, though, not for ever. The men hammered against the door, and their comrades would soon hear them.

He had to hurry.

Hastily, but also very careful, he walked down the stairs. The old stairs creaked under his feet, and he really hoped that no solider was around. He reached the end of the stairs, crouching down behind the banisters, his eyes wandering around.

He found Alex leaning against a wall; he looked pale. Summers' eyes were closed, but Erik saw no blood. So, the boy was alive.. The metal-bender breathed out in relief; the boy was okay... So, now he had to get the boy, and after that he had to get out of here without being seen.

Erik took a look around, but no one was to be seen. Sure, they could be hiding in the shadows, but he would sense their metal. At the moment, he sensed nothing.

He hurried to Alex, running crouched and in the shadows, his eyes never leaving his surroundings. "Summers, hey!" Erik whispered,gently shaking the boy by his shoulders. Erik noticed the tranquilizer dart that stuck in Alex' arm. So, he was unconscious... Erik cursed; great, now it would have to carry the boy.

He laid is Arm around Alex' shoulder, the other arm was under the boy's legs. He was just about the get up as he sensed their metal buckles. His eyes widened as his head turned around; several soliders in black suits stood at the stairs to the basement, pointing with their guns at him. "We knew that someone would come down to get the boy." A man told him, his voice emotionless.

Erik hissed, his arms rightened around the boy. Great; he'd been running straight into a trap!

He would not be able to run, they would shoot him down if he tried. The worse was that he could not sense any metal in their ammunition, so the tranquilizer darts were made of plastic as well.

He grit his teeth, his eyes on the men in the dark. He could hear the click as they took the safety catches off, and his body tensed. His mind swirled around and his powers grasped the next best metal thing he could get, which happened to be the clothes rack, throwing it towards the men.

It was throwing them off their balance, some men fell backwards, and this gave Erik the time to stand up with Alex in his arms.

With long strides he ran towards the door, yanking it open with a flick of his wirst. The cold winter wind hit his face and his arms, giving him gooseflesh. He could see the snow and the dark outline of the trees in the distance, and he had to narrow his eyes as bright light hit his face. Several cars were parked close to the pond and several more men had directed their guns at him.

He hadn't even set a foot on snow-capped the ground outside, as he heard them fire. His breath stuck in his throat as he saw the darts flying towards him and he closed his eyes, wincing, waiting for the darts to pierce through his skin. Though, nothing happened.

Slowly he opened his eyes, frowning as he saw the darts only mere inches in front of them hovering in the air. "That was close." he said out aloud, because he was sure that Charles could hear him very well.

_"I know, but I won't be able to hold them for long."_ the telepath answered quietly inside his head. Erik could hear in his voice that it took his friend a lot of effort to stop the darts and the humans with his telekinesis. Charles was still not familiar with this power, though he had trained himself with moving books and other small things through the house. But, humans were no books; they moved, trying to fight against the resistance.

_"Hurry now, Erik. "_ Charles voice was stern, allowing no buts. _"Take Alex to the garage, the others are waiting there! I will try to stop those men as long as it takes you to get there, and I will try to follow."_

Erik hissed, angry because he hadn't wanted Charles to get into danger. He would have managed it alone...Now, however, Charles had to put himself into danger, just because he had been so careless..

_"Erik!" _Charles voice was a tone darker now, bringing Erik back to the present.

_I'll come back to help you_, the metal-bender promised as he took two steps to the side. The fifteen cm deep layer of snow was cold under his feet, making him shiver. It pained him to leave his friend alone with those humans who would harm him as soon as he was to weak to hold his telekinetic defense upright. But, there was no time for being stubborn now; he had to hurry, because every minute that went by was a lost minute to their escape.

Erik took a deep breath, than he looked up into the sky. Erik Lehnsherr was able to control magnetic fields, and therefore he could fly, even without needing metal to pull himself into the air. That he had discovered some weeks ago.

The flying was easy, though he had to focus at the magnetic field, and now he had to carry another body. The wind caused him some trouble, pushing against him with all its strenght, almost making him lose his balance, and it was still snowing, making it difficult for Erik to see through the chaos of white. His willpower, however, was stronger than the wind, and soon he found himself landing in front of the garage door.

Footsteps in the snow showed that the kids were, indeed, already in the garage. Erik pushed open the dark red gate, which was covered by a thin layer of ice. He was blinded by garish light, once again this evening.

Immediately the teenagers stood around him, already in a fighting position. Hank looked like a wild beast, baring his teeth, while Sean looked ready to kill him with the hammer that he must have found in the toolbox, and Raven looked a lot taller than she had been before. Erik had to admit, he was pretty surprised.

"Erik!" Raven shrank back to her normal height, and Sean lowered the hammer. "What happened to Alex?"

Erik walked to the car as he answered. "They've shot him with a tranquilizer dart. " He stopped in front of the car, then he raised his left hand and pulled the door open witht the help of his powers. The teenagers followed him, watching him as he placed Alex on the passenger seat. "You'll drive to wherever Charles told you to drive." He leaned back, his face without any emotiones. "Charles and I will follow."

Raven's yellow eyes widened as she took a look around. "Where is he?" She turned her head back to Erik, her eyes narrowing "Don't tell me you've left him alone with them!" He could almost sense her anger towards him.

"I had to." he answered calmly as he walked back to the garage door. "He saved me and Alex by stopping the humans and their darts with his telekinesis."

Raven snorted in anger while Hank put his hand on her shoulder to calm her down. "Is that so?" she asked with a hiss. "And why didn't you just stop them?"

Erik, who was almost out of the garage, turned back to look at the angry teenager. "Because-" he answered, his voice still calm, because he knew that Raven was just worried. "- they used plastik for their guns, and also for the darts. Anyway-" he added as he turned back to the outside "Why didn't you stop him?"

Raven did not answer, but he hadn't expected her to do so. "Please, try to be careful this time." Was all she said, her eyes directed at the ground while Hank squeezed her shoulder. She was worried, about her brother, and also about Erik.

He knew that neither of the teenagers wanted to flee and hide while their mentors fought against humans. It probably took all of Raven's trust into Charles to do what they were told to do.

"We have no key." Sean suddenly said, and Erik turned around once more. The older man sighed, lifting his hand; a nail flew up, and with some swift movement he had made an exact copy of the car key. "Whoa." Sean caught the key as Erik threw it to him. "Thanks man.."

The cold of the winter hit him as he left the semi-warm garage. _"Erik!"_ he could hear Charles voice inside his head, sounding breathless _"Hurry!" _

And so he did; he lifted himself into the night sky, cold wind tugging at his t-shirt and trousers, ruffling his hair.

He was near the mansion as he could see him; Charles running barefoot through the snow, followed by several men and the light of the big headlights of the cars.

He lowered himself to the ground, only his feet hovering over the white layer of snow. He could see Charles, who came running towards him. Suddenly, though, he stumbled, his mismatched eyes wide.

_"Erik!"_

They've got him.

..

He was running like a madman, already breathless, sometimes almost slipping because of the snow. He hadn't been able to hold the men any longer, and now he ran as fast as he could, away from the mansion and the garage. He had to lead them as far away from the others than he could. Better him than them.

Snowflakes flew into his eyes, blinding his vision, making him stumble.

If just Erik and the kids were alright...

He turned around, whirling up the snow behind himself with his telekinesis, trying to blind the humans. The light of the cars was searching for him. The telepath gasped for air, his chest hurting because of the cold. He felt chased like an animal, like a ciminal ..

Why had it come to this, and how?

Why were they being chased?

Why couldn't the humans talk to them like they would do to any other normal human beings?

Or, did they thought of them as animals? Was that the reason why this was happening?

And; was this really the CIA?

He could hear cars, and the light of the headlamps followed him; they were close on his heels. Fear went through him, and a spark of panic lit up; what would happen if they got him? What were their plans? They would not kill him, that was for sure, otherwise they would use other ammunition. Was this a plan of Stryker and Sherman?

_Erik, hurry!,_ he screamed, through he had no clue why; Erik wouldn't be able to help him, he would only get shot himself_._ At those times Charles deliberated if it would be okay if he would force Erik to go; it would be for his own safty.. But, Erik would never forgive him afterwards.

Charles stumbled, his eyes wide. Damn it.

But, then he could feel him; Erik was near! Charles struggled to his feet, his feet that he could barely feel because of the cold. Even his hands were cold as ice..He continued his run, and he felt relief as he could feel Raven and the others leaving.

He began to speed up.

The young man bit his lower lip because of the cold wind against his face, his nose was red, his hair covered with snowflakes and swirling around his head.

The guns clicked, shots halled through the dark night.

His heart was racing.

Charles managed to grasp some of the darts, but not all. He stumbled as a one dart hit his shoulder, another his back, but that didn't stop him from running.

He could see Erik... He was in front of him, several meters, lowering himself to the ground. He couldn't see the face of the other man, but he could feel his worry.

Charles wouldn't make it.

_Erik!_

He stumbled again, his mind slowly getting blurry. Now it was impossible for them to flee; Erik wouldn't be fast enough while carrying him, and Charles wouldn't be strong enough to keep his consciousness. But, Erik could still go without him..

The kids...They couldn't leave them alone..

_Leave!_ The telepath could feel the anger and worry that went through his friend as he said those words, _Leave Erik! Raven and...the others need you!_

_"I won't leave without you!"_ came the grim reply of the other man.

Charles laughed sadly at those words. He should have known that Erik would not listen; he was so damn stubborn and blinded by his love to him. If he just would listen to him..At least Charles would know that his boyfriend was safe, but said boyfriend would never leave him alone; never again.

His running slowed down, and he dropped to his knees, his vision turning dark as he fell face first into the snow.

The last thing he could hear was Erik's scream and several more shots.

They've got him as well.


	4. Chapter 3: Being Captured

MirrorFlower and DarkWind and Valkyrie-Pleasant, thanks for the reviews :) All the others; thanks for reading ;)

So, next chappy, next week, I guess. ( xD busy with school, aw..)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

Those homo sapiens! Did they really believe he would stay calm and collected? Well, they were wrong, more than wrong; he would show them what mutants were capable to do!

With a loud roar he lifted the cars up into the air. He could hear the gunshots, but that only made him laugh. He threw the men away, using their buckles and buttons to fling them over the icy ground. The cars were thrown away with an elegant movement of his hands, and as soon as he was sure that he had gained some time he ran up to Charles, who lay face down in the snow.

It was dark outside now, the lamps of the car headlights broken. Though, he still could see more than he had expected; the snow was a glowing white layer on the ground, reflecting the dim light of the moon.

Erik tramped through the cold snow, a sharp pain running through his nacked feet, and the falling snow was blurring his vision. "Charles!" The metal-bender breathed, kneeling down next to the other man, turning him onto his back so he could get some air.

Charles' lips were blue from the cold, the tip of his nose red and his hands and feet turning bluish. Damn, Erik was sure he himself wasn't looking much better.

Carefully he lifted the younger man up, carrying him in his arms as he let his gaze wander over the upturned cars and men on the ground. Some of them stood up already, and Erik knew he had to hurry now.

There weren't much options left; he could run, or try to hide.

They would likely follow him anyway, and it would be impossible to get rid of a group of so many men, but Erik would rather die trying than be captured by waiting.

Of course, he knew, they would not kill them; they were to precious to be killed, their powers to interesting. That was why they left the kids alone, because Charles and he were the real target; otherwise another group of men would have followed the kids with a car.

But, suddenly Erik wasn't sure if car had followed the children. He hoped not, because then all of this had been for nothing.

The metal-bender raised his gaze to the sky, his powers outstreched as he lifted himself upwards into the air. It was a stupid idea, trying to flee by flying, but he wouldn't get far with running and so the only other option left was flying, even if that meant that he would be a good target.

This time he was glad that it was snowing, because the snow would blind the men as well as him, though they probably had something like a thermographic camera inside their helmets which would allow them to see him because of his body heat.

The wind hit his face, snow was blown into his eyes and he had to blink several times to clear his vision. He had no clue where to go. Well, as far away from them as he could.

He could hear the shouts of the humans below, guns were loaded and the cars roared back to life. He began to speed up; snow hammered against his face and unclothes arms, and at some point he was too numb to even feel the coldness.

What worried him through was not his own condition, but Charles'; everyone knew that it was a fatal fault to fall asleep under such extrem low weather conditions...

Something brushed his side, and he was sure that it had been a dart. He should fly higher, but he couldn't afford that, because that would mean less oxygen and more coldness.

The metal-bender pressed his lips together, which were rough and cracked because of the cold. One of his feet brushed a tree, leaving scratches on his numb skin, but Erik was hardly aware of it.

His lungs pained because of the cold air, making it hard for him to breath, and the tip of his nose was freezing cold. The arms around Charles' body tightened, and Erik could not help but notice that the younger man was as cold as ice.

They both would freeze to death if they would continue like this! But, what other option was left?

More gunshots could be heard, and Erik hissed as one of the darts nearly hit his arm. It was the dart that brought him out of focus, leaving him swaying in the air, and as he looked up he was met by the garish light of a headlight.

A helicopter.

Erik couldn't react fast enough; the man fired a volley of shots and four darts pierced his skin.

The mutant gasped in pain, thrown out of focus as he tumbled down, and Erik was sure he could see the smugly grin of the man as he lost the control to hold himself in the air.

He hit the frozen ground with his back, gasping for air as his lungs were left empty by the hard impact. The headlights of the helicopter shone through the trees, cars could be heard.

Erik struggled to his feet, up to Charles, who lay several meters away. Somehow both of them had managed to stay unharmed, through Erik felt the dizziness of the drug spreading through his body.

It was over, they wouldn't be able to escape now, but Erik would not give up!

With shaky hands he lift Charles up into his arms and he even managed to stand back up. But, walking was more difficult now, his numb feet not reacting properly and his dizzy mind, leaving him with nausea.

His breath was sluggish, his mind blurry and his head did hurt. The cars stopped, car doors were opened and the footsteps of men could be heard. Erik tried to hurry, but he couldn't take it any longer.

Charles had been hit by two darts and had blacked out after mere minutes, Erik had been hit by four. The effect of the drugs was strong, but Erik's resistance against drugs had become stronger because of the experiments of Shaw.

He tried to hurry, but his legs tried to give away under him. Erik Lehnsherr had a lot of willpower, but even he was not able to resist the dose of four tranquilizer darts.

He stumbled, his mind already turning dark. He wasn't even aware that he hit the ground with a soft thud, Charles still pressed against his body.

...

"Mr Stryker, Sir."

Stryker swirled around with his chair, his hands folded in his lap, his cold eyes scanning the person in the doorway of his office. They were at their hidden base, near the Alcali Lake. No one knew of it, not even the rest of the CIA.

Three days had gone by since Sherman had ordered his men to attack the mansion. Stryker smirked as his thoughts went back to MacTaggert. The woman had told him everything he had wanted to know, of course without knowing what he was about to do..

"Yes, Bader? Any news about the mutants?"

Officer Bader nodded, straightening. "Indeed sir. My team returned from their mission and was able to catch two of the wanted mutants."

"Only two?" Stryker snarled, leaning back in his chair. He had thought they would be able to get all of them, what a shame.

"Yes, Sir." Bader gave him a short nod. "They were able to get two men. I think they are...a metal-manipulator and a telepath... "

Now Stryker began to smirk, his hand running over the arm of his chair. "That are good news." He tilted his head "Are they already here?"

The officer gave another short nod. "Yes, Sir, they've arrived an hour ago. Doctor Teed and professor Thorton have ordered to bring them to the cells."

Stryker hummed in satisfaction as he stood up. "Very well."

Bader eyed him with an questioning gaze as Stryker walked up to the door. "Sir, you should be careful around them. The doctor and the professor are specialists, and my team had a lot of trouble with this mutant brood..."

Stryker laughed out and waved off. "Oh, don't worry, they won't be able to do much harm here."

...

He blinked several times, frowning as he was blinded by garish light.

The lab?

But, no... They had been running away...He could remember the snow and the men and- Erik sat up, his eyes wide, his heart hammering in his chest. He was in a square room, almost like a big cube, made out of glass. He could see a lot more of such cube-like cells which were lined up in a big hall, which looked like a warehouse without windows. A big corridor went through the middle of the row, the cells looking like small glass houses next to a main road. The light came from big lab lamps, too white and garish for the eye, causing him a headache.

His cell was almost half as big as his room in Westchester, and even the floor was made out of thick glass, most likely bullet-proof. Erik doubted that their powers would be of any use here. There was a toilett and a sink in the corner of the cell, separated from the rest of the room by a blurry, waist-high glass wall.

He noticed that he felt better now, not as cold as he had felt on the run, though it wasn't warm and comfortable here. There was no heating, and the glass wasn't the best thermal insulation to keep the warmth..

A small groan to his right side made him frown, and he turned his head to see Charles lying on the ground next to him. The telepath was clad in a white shirt and white trousers, and as Erik looked down himself he noticed that he was wearing the same clothes as well. He felt as if he was held in prison..

"Erik?" Charles mumbled, blinking and squeezing his mismatched eyes shut with a groan. Erik leaned forward, his eyes on the door. "Everything alright?" he asked, his eyes scanning the room for cameras; he found one in the right corner of the room, staring down on them like a dark eye. Erik made a grimace, his lips pushed together and his eyes narrowed as he stubbornly stared into the lense. He was sure they were watching them.

"My head does hurt." the telepath mumbled as he sat up. He seemed nervous, surely because he did not knew where they were. Erik's eyes flickered to the other man, and he wondered why they both were kept in one cell. Not that he did mind, but he was sure it wasn't for theit mental wellbeing...

_"Where are we?"_ Charles voice asked inside his head, still sluggish because of the drugs that were in his systhem, and Erik could feel the flicker of worry that went along with the question.

_I don't know.._, Erik mentally answered, his eyes back on the camera,_ I woke up mere minutes before..I have no clue where we are..._

_"They're planning something, don't they?"_ Charles mumbled with unease in his mental voice, and Erik could feel that the other mutant was nervous._ "It is the CIA, am I right?.."_

The mismatched eyes of Charles turned to the camera in the corner as well, fixing it with his intensive stare. Erik was sure even on the screen his eyes had to look kind of scary, and he had to smirk as he imagined the humans shivering in discomfort.

_"They're watching us."_ Charles mused as his gaze wandered over the other cells. _"Though, I wonder why they've put us together in one cell, since there are so many free ones left.."_ Erik could hear the pain in the younger man's voice as he imagined the glass rooms to be filled with other mutants.

_They must have something in mind..., _Erik answered as he stood up and walked to the door. _Something that involves us both...Or maybe they want to show mercy. _The last sentence was added with bitter sarcasm.

Charles furrowed his brow as he watched Erik, who slid his hand over the cold glass of the door. The glass was hard and cold under his fingers, unbreakable from the in- or outside, at least when your weapon was only your fist and telepathy. Well, Charles could try to use his telekinesis, but there was nothing in the room that could be thrown at the glass. Okay, the toilett, maybe, but that wouldn't be much of a success either..

_"I am still able to use my powers.."_ Charles trailed off, and he wasn't sounding very happy. Erik turned around to the telepath who was still sitting on the floor, his intelligent eyes watching the metal-bender. _Well, that's something good, isn't it?  
><em>

Charles shook his head, his eyes flickering to the camera as he did so, as if he feared that the humans would notice that they were talking to another via telepathy. As if they didn't know already.. _"No. I am not able to reach any mind outside this cell...And the fact that you and me are here together, linked through my telepathy, does mean something bad.."_

Erik walked back to the younger man, his eyebrow raised as he looked down on him, his back to the camera, blocking the view on Charles. "What do you mean?" he whispered.

Charles looked uncomfortable, squirming under Erik's gaze. "Has to be about projecting pain." he mumbled. _"I assume they'll use my telepathy to let one of us feel the pain that they've caused the other one of us... Of course, I'll be able to block the projection of most of the pain, but only if my mental shields are stable, and somehow I fear they're gonna try to break them.." _

His gaze was lowered to the floor, as if he was ashamed of his powers, his lips tightly pressed together. Erik took a deep breath as he thought about what Charles had just said. "It doesn't matter." He then answered, calmly. _"At least were together...That's something for the start."_

Charles laughed dryly as he turned his head to Erik, his face turned into a grimace of anguish. "Hoho, my friend...I wish it was, but it isn't. You don't know what it will be like..." he trailed off, using his mental voice to speak further. _"Mental pain, caused by telepathy, is as horrible as 'real' pain, Erik; it works like a weapon for the mind, causing pain without actually hurting the body itself.. You could get seriously hurt because of me.._".

Erik sat down on the floor, taking the smaller hands of Charles, his gaze stern as he answered, _I don't care, Charles. I have endured a lot of pain, mentally and __physically_. He paused, then he added with a soft voice, _And, I would endure it again, if it was for being together with you_. Charles smiled slightly, through his eyes were still sad. _"You're such a romantic fool sometimes, Erik. Really...You should have left me behind as you had the chance.."_

Erik's face darkened his answer with a snarl, _Honestly, Charles; I've almost lost you once, do you think I would want to lose you again?_

_"This not about me!"_ Charles mentally screamed, his face contorted with rage; he looked so unlike Charles right now, reminding Erik of the days when the phoenix had taken over. _"This is about you and the kids and probably about a lot of more mutants!"_

Erik pressed his lips together till they were a thin line, leaning back as he looked at Charles, who grimly looked back. Though, his gaze softened and he sighed, running a hand through his messy curls. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to offend you.." his voice slipped into Erik's head again "_Of course I am..impressed...of what you would do for me, what you've are already done for me, but...I don't want you to get hurt, not because of me." _His eyes were utterly sad, and Erik felt his heart clench in sympathy. _"You're too important to me, Mr. Lehnsherr..And, remember; I've almost lost you __ once __too, and it had been because of me.."_

Erik laughed softly, his fingers playing with the hem of his right trouser leg. _And, can't you imagine that you might be important to me too?I thought you know that.._

_Important, more than anything else..._ He added, though this thought was more to himself than to Charles.

"It is okay, Charles." he said out aloud, his eyes wandering up to Charles' face, who whatched him with a serious expression on his face. They sat there for several minutes, not saying anything, as Charles let out a breath of air. "Okay." he said, his eyes closed. _"Though, maybe we should cut the mental connection, just to be sure-"_

_Don't you dare_, the metal-bender hissed, his narrowed eyes flashing with anger. _I told you; I am alright._ Though, suddenly he began to realize that not only HE would feel Charles' pain, but Charles also his...

_"You're worried about __that__?"_ Charles laughed sadly, his eyes soft as they opened again._ "It's alright, then. I can take it, I am not made of glass.. We'll go through this together.."_

Somehow it felt good..To know that there would still be a connection between Charles and his mind..He would feel lonely and cold without it. He could remember the time that Charles had spent in a coma, and the days without the telepath inside his head had been...weird. As if he wasn't himself anymore, as if there was something missing ...

Maybe it would easier, for them both, to handle any pain that would come by knowing that there was someone at their side, not only physically but also mentally..

The younger man lifted his head to look up at the ceiling, blinking because of the garish light. "We'll get out of here.." he mumbled, a small smile on his lips. "Somehow we'll manage to get out of here..._They'll find us.._."

_Of course they will.., _Erik added to lift their spirit, though he actually didn't quite believe what he had just said.. Charles could feel his doubt, but the telepath said nothing.

He was still the optimist, but Erik was sure that even Charles was unsure about their rescue. They sat there in silence, their hands laying together on the cold ground, though they did not touch.

_"I am sorry.." _Charles mumbled with a sighed, running a hand over his face.

Erik shook his head, rolling his eyes. Of course Charles thought it was his fault. Blaming himself had always been something that Charles had been good at. _It's not your fault that we're here...dear.._

Charles nearly had to laugh at the last word, but it stayed with a small, sad smile. _"I knew you would say it, but I feel like it is.."_

_How should you have known?, _Erik asked, _That they would come for us? They've got your adress, god knows from whom..._

Charles flinched slightly, and Erik was sure that the telepath had an idea from whom the CIA had gotten the adress... A name flickered inside Erik's mind, unconsciously projected by Charles, and Erik wrinkled his nose.

_It's her fault, Charles, _the metal-bender hissed._ You didn't do anything, you've done nothing wrong._

_ She did...  
><em>


	5. Chapter 4:Talk With A Madman

Hey ho; so, here is a ..huh, pretty long chappy xD Dunno what happen to me, hehe. Maybe I wanted to get more spirit into this story. Dunno why, but I felt like the start was a bit..rough?  
>So, enjoy, and see you soon (probably next week)<p>

Thanks for every reviews, and see you all soon.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

Mismatched eyes wandered over cool glass, stopped over the small slit of the door, then darted to the camera in the right corner above; there had to be a blind spot, and somehow those walls of thick glass could be destroyed.

Still, even if they managed to escape their glass prison - there where the guardians. The guardians which walked up and down the corridor in front of their cell; they were wearing guns and helmets, making it impossible for the telepath to take a look inside their heads.

Charles ran a hand over the cool glass, his eyes darting to the metal-bender who sat some steps away, his back leaned against the glass, looking half asleep. Charles ran a hand over the cool glass, his eyes darting to the metal-bender who sat some steps away, his back leaned against the glass, looking half asleep.

Though, Charles knew that Erik was more than attentive; the eyes of the metal-bender were a sharp gray, the greenish hue had faded to a dull grayish tone, his jaw was clenched and his hands neatly folded against his abdomen.

He might look as if he did not care at all, but Charles could feel the tension; Erik was nervous, just slightly, but it was there. Maybe he could not use his powers, maybe because it was reminding him of his past, Charles could not tell.

It was hard to tell how long they had been here already.

Charles assumed for one day, maybe two, but not much longer. No CIA agent had been here; in fact, no human had been here at all, except for the guardians outside the cell, not even food had been given them, yet, but Charles was sure that they wouldn't die because of that. Sooner or later they would get some food. Actually food wasn't the most important thing he had to think about at the moment.

He thought about Raven and the others. He thought about an plan of escape for Erik and himself, although he had to admit that it was useless to think about such a plan now since they had no idea where they were. No map of the grounds, not of the rooms or the corridors, no information about the outdoor area...

They hadn't been out of the cell at all, and Charles was still not able to lead his powers behind the glass. Yes, there was a door slit, but the whole hall was full of glass cells and humans with helmets, and so Charles' powers were bouncing off of everything he tried to grasp. They were like light in a mirror room, reflected by the glass of the mirrors. It was really depressing.

They knew absolutly nothing, nothing besides the fakt that they had been captured by humans and that they hadn't slept for several hours; the garish light from above made it impossible to even think about sleeping. The light was to bright against their eyelids, the silence too present, and the glass too cold.

He felt powerless, and it was weird to feel that way because he had never felt powerless. He was glad that Erik was here with him, another warm mind that he could touch.

Well, Erik must feel as powerless as Charles did at the moment; glass, no metal here at all, not even on their clothes, no metal zippers, no metal buttons, nothing. Charles was sure that Erik's mind must feel as empty as Charles' did at the moment; empty minds, without the constant hum of metal or the faint chatter of thoughts from others..

Charles had never really thought about being without his powers; his powers had always been there for him since he was small, he had never felt as cold as he did now..

But, there was a possibility to change that..

The phoenix chirped inside his head, hidden behind the dark wooden door, deep deep inside his mind, under all his other memories, hidden in the basement of his mind, lurking in the shadows behind the bars, waiting for him to call him, waiting for him to get weak..

No.

No matter what would happen here, Charles would manage it with his own powers, alone, without the 'help' of the hungry beast.

He heard the offended snort of the phoenix as he called it hungry beast. Ah, sure, it was able to hear all his thoughts, how could he forget.. _Oh, be quiet back there_, he mumbled and the phoenix made a condescending sound. It was not able to speak, not without being linked to Charles mind.

Yes, it was inside Charles' mind, was there with him, but he had locked it away, away from his soul and his deepest thoughts. Now the force was just that; a force, a force in the shape of a huge firebird. He could see the flames of the phoenix in front of his inner eyes, the huge shape of the bird behind the shadows of the bars, but Charles ws not afraid; not anymore. He had rebuilt his mind, had rebuilt his soul. He was alright now, mentally. He had no clue for how long, though, and he knew that the hunger of the force was rising..

"Charles!" the metal-bender hissed, drawing the telepath out of his thoughts. The look on Erik's face was stern, serious, his brows drawn together and his lips a thin line. A sigh, _"Thought I'd lost you.."_ the older man mumbled inside his mind, and Charles blinked,then furrowed his brow. "Why would you think that?" he whispered back, vocally, not mentally.

Erik looked at him for a moment,a thoughtfully expression on his face, almost looking pained, then he shook his head "Doesn't matter." and leaned back against the glass. Charles took a deep breath through his nose, maybe to calm himself and his mind, then he leaned back against the glass as well.

_"His eyes..."_

Charles head turned to Erik as he heard his thoughts. He hadn't meant to hear it, it was an accident, was too quiet here, the thoughts too loud, but Erik did not seem to have noticed anything.

_My eyes, then?_ Charles asked himself, his head turned back to the camera in the corner. _Do they tell so much about my inside?_ Absently he reached for his left eye, the red one, covering it with his left hand. It had once been blue..Once this body had belonged all to him...

"They're coming." Erik whispered with a hushed voice, his grayish eyes narrowed and almost gleaming in the light from above.

Charles turned his head to get a better view on the corridor. Erik was right; two men were walking down the corridor, followed by an escort of soliders.

One of the man was not very tall and plump; he was wearing a lab coat, his grayish black hair was trimmed at the sides, his face a blank mask with no emotions. Charles couldn't see the man's eyes, but he shivered just by seeing the man walking towards them. He had something cold in his aura...

The other man was tall and almost lean, his dark hair was pulled back behind his head, shaping his triangular face sharp and arrogant. He was not wearing a lab coat, instead he wore a black coat, dark trousers and a dark red pullover. Charles raised an eyebrow as he noticed that the man was wearing round sunglasses inside the building. Maybe the man was annoyed of the bright light as well? They both were wearing no helmets, but Charles was sure that they had found another way to escape his telepathy.

He heard Erik's growl of frustration and narrowed his eyes to take a closer look at the men; no metal either. What a shame. Well, that would make it difficult to start a fight; not that Charles was intending to fight, but the look on Erik's face spoke for itself..

"Calm yourself.." Charles whispered, his mismatched eyes not leaving the men while his mind tried to come up with a plan. "Easier said than done.." Erik growled back, and Charles was sure he could see him baring his teeth.

"I know." Charles agreed, his voice calm. _But that's what they want; they want us to fight, because that would give them one more reason to hurt us, to punish us. _he continued in Erik's mind. _Stay calm, give them no reason to hurt you more than they actually had planned. _Erik hissed, but Charles shook his head. _I know what you think, but we should try to behave, that's the least we can do to prevent further harm._

_"I don't want to behave." _Erik snorted, his arms crossed in front of his chest like a petulant child. _"I want to escape."_

_Oh, sure, and I want to stay here because it is so nice and lovely_, Charles hissed back, rolling his eyes. _Erik, you idiot; they are going to take us out of the cell, and that does mean we will be able to have a closer look at the surroundings. Maybe we will be able to spot a blind spot, a way to escape.._The telepath trailed off, then he nodded towards the men. _We have to be sure that they won't notice anything. Just try to remember every possible escape route, any doors or corridors. Everything can be a big help._

He gave Erik a stern look. "Do you think you'll manage to stay calm? No riots, no attempts to escape, not as long as we don't know what to do next." His voice was low, he was sure even the camera could not record it.

Erik wrinkled her nose and pressed his lips together, then he gave him a short nod. "As you wish.."

"Thanks." Charles smiled, and would have kissed Erik, if there wasn't a camera. Not that it would bother him, but he would give the CIA no chance to use their feelings as a weapon against each other.

The door was opened, and Erik jumped to his feet, while Charles slowly rose up.

"It's okay." the telepath mumbled. "It's alright."

_Just..calm down._

He was quiet as he was dragged along the corridor, arms cuffed behind the back. From the corner of his eyes he could see Erik, who literally growled with a low voice, reminding Charles of a tall, lean wolf. His all too white teeth gleaming in the light of the bright light tube above them, sharp and dangerous. Charles had joked about his grin once, had said that it was reminding him of a shark. Now he knew why he had said it..

Charles himself was all quiet. Sometimes he winced as he was shoved or yanked to hard, but he never growled or glared at the men. In fact he kept his head high, looking straight ahead. He had to look arrogant to them as he walked along the narrow corridor, shoulders straight and head raised slightly, maybe all too self-confident, but that was alright with Charles; better they thought of him as arrogant than fragile.

Charles heard a small hiss as on of the men grabbed Erik's arm with much more force than before. Charles gave his friend a warning glance, his lips pressed together as he shook his head just barely visible; calm your mind, he meant to say.

"Don't slow down!" he was pushed forwards, almost stumbling over his own feet. Erik's growl became louder, but thanks to god he stayed calm.

Charles' eyes darted around, taking in every single door they passed, every new corridor they took. The walls were out of cement now, appearing almost greenish in the light of the neon lights. The shadows of the side corridors seemed much too dark to Charles' eyes, but that had to be the side effect of the neon light of the main corridor on which they walked. Somehow this all was reminding Charles of the bunker in the basement of the mansion. Maybe this was some bunker- like building underneath the earth?

The main corridor was long, the end not in sight... Charles tried to count the small corridors which were leading into different directions._ One, two, three to the left, four five to the right, six, seven eight to the left.._

It was cold here, almost even colder than in the cells. Charles could see his breath in front of his face and shivered slightly. He would rub his arms with his hands, if could.. "Don't slow down!" He was hit between the shoulder blades with something that felt like a rod, making him yelp in pain. Erik did not growl, but Charles felt his anger.

Then, suddenly, the walls began to crack; dust began to crumble from the low ceiling and cracks began to run along the walls.

Charles eyes widened slightly, his head snapped around to meet the cold eyes of Erik, whose whole body was trembling wih the effort to control his anger. But, no, nono, he wasn't even trying to control it; he tried to break to walls!

_Erik, Erik, stupid Erik!_ Charles' mind began to scream out loud, alarm bells ringing in Charles ears. A creaking and humming was heard as the metal pipes and wires inside the walls began to flash to life, bending under the will of Erik Lehnsherr, whose eyes were just as cold and gray as the metal he was bending.

_Erik don't, Erik don't,don't Erik, don't!_ Charles screamed towards the other man, but he was lost in his anger. Charles could feel the rapid pounding of Erik's heart against his rib cage, and only then Charles did recognized;

Erik wasn't only angry, he was afraid as well..The camps, Shaw..It had to be that, it had to remind him of it.

_Dear Erik, my dear dear Erik.. _Charles tried to reach for Erik, not mentally but with his hands, but then he was remembered that his hands were cuffed behind his back. A strong grip on his shoulder made him turn around and he gasped as he was yanked along the corridor, away from Erik.

"Erik!"screamed his voice shaky; this time he couldn't hide his panic as well as he had before. What would they do, what would they do, what would they do to Erik? Erik was held by four men now, all four trying to wrestle him to the ground, but Erik was strong; he held his ground, his eyes gleaming with fury and anger and-

The gray eyes of the metal-bender met the mismatched ones of Charles, wide with shock. _Use them, your powers, use your telekinesis to throw those men away from Erik, your Erik, you can do it -_

No, he could not, because that would mean even more punishment to them both,wouldn't it? But, Erik, what would they do to him if they had him down?

"Erik!"

_Calm your mind.._

Erik began to struggle; somehow he had managed to free his right hand, which now reached for Charles, his fingers stiff and trembling as if he was reaching for the satellite dish "Charles!..._They're taking you away from me..." _His voice was steady, strong, but-

Was there a hint of panic in Erik's voice, or was Charles just imagining things?

And the metal in the wall creaked and arched as the metal-bender rammed his elbows to his side, into the side of two men, running towards Charles who was dragged along the corridor.

Those grayish green eyes...There was horror in them, terror.

Erik was afraid.

And again, Erik began to scream "Charles!" This time his voice was loud, full of rage, but Charles could also hear the concern that Erik tried to suppress. Charles gasped as an arm was slung around his stomach, dragging him down one of the dark side corridor with brutal force. _"Hang on!"_

_It's not me you have to worry about! _Charles screamed back,his own mental voice trembling with panic, _it's you, behind you, watch out!_

But it was too late - two men appeared behind Erik, wrestling him down to the ground while Charles was carried away into the darkness of the side corridor, his eyes wide as they stared at the point were the light of the main corridor shone, were Erik was beaten down on the ground, becoming smaller and smaller as Charles was dragged further and further away from the light, from Erik.

His Erik.

But he was not afraid, because he knew he would see him again. Though, he feared the condition in which Erik would be in.

_Please don't hurt him too much, please don't.._

_"Charles..."_ the mental voice of the metal-bender cracked.

_It's okay_, _Erik_.. he hushed, _it's alright.. _

And Charles reached out with his powers, small tendrils of light towards Erik's mind, pulsing blue in the darkness of the corridor, only for Charles to see. He reached with them, with the tendrils of his powers, reached for Erik's mind and wrapped them around it, around and around, mumbling and lulling Erik. Somewhere in Erik's mind he found the right word, mumbling it over and over again like a mantra.

_Schlaf, Schlaf..._

It would be easier for Erik if he was asleep. Then he would not feel the pain that the men were causing him with their fists and boots. And the tendrils wrapped themself around Erik's mind, comfortable and warm, taking him away from the pain that Charles could feel all to well through their mind-connection.

_"Charles.." _the older man mumbled, his voice sluggish because of the weight of Charles' powers on him. _"What are you.."_

Charles knew that Erik felt betrayed; betrayed because Charles lulled him with his telepathy, even if he had promised to never use it against him, never to see into his mind.. He would apologize later._  
><em>

Erik tried to fight the sleep, tried to fight Charles' powers. Mentally the other man tried to cut them off, tried to grasp the twining threads of pulsing blue light, but Charles' will to save Erik from the pain was strong, and his powers even stronger, and so Erik had no chance to fight against the tendrils of telepathy. Charles could see Erik's mental self in front of his inner eye, standing in one of the rooms of his mind, slowly covered by blue and silver tendrils and threads of light, not able to move..

Charles had never really had a closer look in Erik's mind, and even now he brushed the ohters mind just slighty. He wouldn't want to enter it without having asked for premission, but now was no time for asking..So, now all he could see of it were blurry outlines, as if he was looking through a blurry glass. That was why he was not able to see the expression that Erik's mental self wore, but he knew it had to be something between disappointment and anger. He could see, though, that Erik's mind looked close to the mansion, and it even seemed to be his own mansion room.

The mind was able to create many rooms for itself, so this was probably just a part of Erik's mind. Maybe, someday, they could explore it together, like a new world, and some day he would invite Erik to his own mind, now that it had been rebuilt again, recovered from the fight with the phoenix.

Charles could barely see the real Erik now, the light of the main corridor was just a small greenish spot at the end of the darkness that he was dragged through. _It's okay_, Charles assured, his mental voice warm and calming, his power tightening it's grip around Erik's mind, like a cocoon of light, _Just calm your mind..I'll be back in no time.._

Then the connection between them fogged over as Erik's mind shut down, busy with trying to unwrap the tendrils of sleep that Charles had laid over it...

...Charles was shoved into the white room, his eyes narrowing because the neon light from above made the room almost unbearable white, his eyes hurting from it. It was not quite as cold here as it had been on the corridors, though the white of the room gave him the feeling of coldness. Too sterile..

Charles blinked, his mismatched eyes taking in the sight of the room; it was a lab, or something that was close to resembling a lab. A small steel table stood in the middle of the room, looking close to an operation table, and making Charles gulping nervously. He had been nervous before, of course, but he had tried not to show anything of it. Well, it was apparently getting harder to deal with it.

The smell of the room made Charles shiver; it was very close to smelling like a hospital, clean and sterile, a hint of alcohol and disinfectant.. He didn't even want to imagine what they were planning on doing in here.

Well, they had definitely a lot of things they could use; there were glass cabinets and thin shelves, full of boxes and small bins filled with vials and glass bottles.

Again, there was no window to be seen, confirming his suspicion that they were kept in something like a basement or bunker.

His eyes shifted to the desk at the end of the room; the desk was made of glass as well, large and full of papers and folders. Two plastic chairs were placed in front the desk, looking more than unconfortable and reminding Charles of the hard plastic chairs of a waiting room. Behind the desk stood a man that Charles could remember all to well; William Stryker, senior, member of the CIA. The man stood tall and straight, his cold eyes directed at Charles as he smiled and placed his hands behind his back. He was wearing a dark suit and his hair was combed back. The grin on his chubbily face was almost evil and the aura around the man was a mixture of hate, contempt, gloating and eagerness, ice cold against the cautious touch of Charles' powers.

Stryker raised an eyebrow, and Charles flinched slightly, barely visible. Had the other man felt his touch? Impossible, he had not even fully touched the others mind..

Stryker gestured towards the chair, and Charles was dragged forward by his arm, then roughly pressed down onto one of the chairs. He had been right, the chair was hard and uncomfortable..

"You can leave now." Charles heard the soft voice of one of the men, and out of the corner of his eyes he saw the soliders salute and leaving the room. Charles eyes darted back to Stryker, and he tried the best to look calm and neutral. Easier said than done..

"I have ordered to bring both of them to me." Stryker turned his attention to the two men behind Charles' back. "So, why it comes that only the telepath his here?"

Someone cleared his throat, than a nasal voice explained, "The metal-manipulator came up with a fight. He was brought back into the cell."

Stryker nodded thoughtfully "I had expected something like this to happen. Well-" he clapped his hands and sat down on the black office Chair behind the desk, which looked much more comfortable than the plastic chair on which Charles was sitting at the moment. "- I think it doesn't matter. You can tell your friend everything what I'm telling you, because actually I've meant to speak to you both." He nodded towards Charles, than his eyes went back to the two men behind Charles. ", maybe you should go and take a look at the metal-master." Charles took a sharp hiss through his clenched teeth but stayed silent. Erik would be alright, Erik would be alright, ...

No words were heard as one of the men left the room. It had been the taller one, because Charles could not feel the presence of his mind anymore. "Now, Mr. Xavier." Stryker leaned back and eyed Charles, interest gleaming in his dark eyes. "I must apologize for the rough visit of my men, but there was no other option, I fear."

Charles gave the man a cold, thin smile "Of course not.." he said, adding courteously. "Mr. Stryker."

Stryker laughed. "Well behaved, aren't you? Not like your friend. English manners? At least one of you mutants has some decency." then he stopped, tilting his head "- though, that's not quite right either, isn't it? You-" he pointed at Charles, a false smile on his lips "- can be very temperamental as well, am I wrong?"

A cold shiver ran down Charles' back and his eyes narrowed just slightly as he began to speak with his polite voice " I am sorry, but I don't think that I can follow the meaning of your statement."

Stryker closed his eyes for one moment, then he opened them again and leaned forward. Charles, on the other hand, leaned back automatically. "Oh, don't play coy, Mr. Xavier. " he smirked, then pointed with his short index finger at Charles' left eye. "Nice eye color. Suits you."

Charles swallowed down the lump inside his throat. Did they know what had happened? Did they..? But, how? He pressed his lips together, his hands scrubbing over the back of the chair. It was really uncomfortable to sit on the plastic chair with his hands tied down behind his back. The hard plastic pressed into the side of his left hand, but he did not dare to lean forward.

"Thank you." he hissed back, his tongue darting over his lower lip. "But sadly I still can't follow your statement. Maybe I could follow your words if my hands were untied.."

Stryker raised one eyebrow, chuckling darkly. "Oh, no Mr. Xavier; you arms are well placed and fine where they are. We don't want this place to be destroyed or.. burned down, right?"

Charles eyes widened, and he knew that shock had to be written all over his face, but he could not help it. They knew, they knew, they knew.. _Calm yourself_, he growled at himself, _they might knew something, but not everything, nothing important. Panic won't help you know. _

Charles took a deep breath, his mismatched eyes cold and his smile almost emotionless. "Ah, I see..Well, in that case I can assure you that nothing will burn down" - _not anymore_. He threw his head back, looking at Stryker from underneath his eyelashes, fixing him with an almost hypnotically gaze. His powers reached out,slowly, only visible for him as golden light chains, almost looking like pure honey. _Right, right, you believe every word I say..._ "You see, I am a telepath,my powers went out of control and I had some problems with projecting them, but I can assure you that there is nothing to worry about." He leaned forward, his mismatched eyes glittering as his powers reached for Stryker's mind, trying to melt into his mind, lulling him. "I know that this is one of the reasons that you keep us here, but we are human and this is a very unhuman treatment, so...It would be kind if you would let us..go."

Normally he would never use his powers to manipulate the feelings of others, but this time it was something different; Stryker was a madman, and Charles had to save Erik's and his own life...

His powers bounced off, something sharp and cold went into the golden tendrils, and he jerked them away from the man's mind, almost hissing in pain. What was that?

Stryker smirked, his face dark and dangerous. "Tried to look inside my head, Xavier?" he asked, his voice sharp as he tapped his finger against his temple.

Charles pressed his lips together, forcing himself to smile as he tried to hide his frustration, "Me? Never."

From the outside he appeared calm and collected, but his inside was racing; what had it been? Why couldn't he touch Stryker's mind? His hands balled into fists as he glared at Stryker, his head raised in an arrogant manner.

"I thought you would know better than to look inside my head just now." Stryker sighed as he stood up. "Well, that just confirms what I have thought; mutants are dangerous and not to be trusted. Especially you." He snarled, slowly walking around the table. Charles would back away, if he wouldn't sit on the chair... "I have known it from the start; you have lulled us with your powers, you have manipulated us. BUT-" he raised his index finger "I won't let this happen again. In fact, I will save our kind from you."

_Our kind.._Charles thought, a grim smile on his lips, _the human race..._ Stryker was a madman. What was his plan? There was panic and ..yes, also fear inside Charles, slowly creeping up inside him. Stryker was a powerful man, and Charles did not want to imagine what he was able to do to mutants..

"I think you make a big mistake." Charles began, his face grim as he followed Stryker's movements with his eyes. "I never, ever, have manipulated anyone. I never used my powers to harm anyone-"

"-Anyone besides the people you've nearly killed in New York City?" Stryker ended the sentence, and Charles knew that his own face must be pale by now, his lips a white line and his body tense.

His heart began to speed up, clenching painfully as panic began to eat at it. How..did they know? That was impossible, no humans had been there, no one had been there except for him and Erik, and..some construction workers..

"We have it all on tape." Stryker's face was dark as he loomed in front of Charles. "We've seen what you are capable to do. And that is why I will pick up every single mutant on the earth. We will lock them away, so no human will be harmed." He leaned down, so that he was eye to eye with Charles, who was not able to say anything. "And...You will help me to find them." He grinned. "How does that sound?"

He, searching for his own kind to them traced down so they could be hunted and used for experiments? Charles felt a nausea approaching as he thought Stryker's plan, it made him sick just to think about it. "Sorry-" he hissed, his face a cold mask "-I don't think I will agree to this collaboration."

Charles hands were sticky as and stiff because he clenched them together so tightly. Stryker sighed again as he leaned against the table, shaking his head as if Charles was a stubborn child. "Tz Tz Tz, please, Mr. Xavier. You have the option to cooperate with us, and you wouldn't be harmed-" which was, of course, a big fat lie-"- so just think about my offer." The voice of Stryker was smooth and calm, almost as if to mock Charles.

Charles smiled bitterly as he glared up at Stryker, his mismatched eyes gleaming under the shadows around his eyes."I don't want to think about that offer, Mr Stryker-" he nearly spat out the name "- I am not going to betray my kind."

_My kind_... He was sounding like Erik, wasn't he? But, yes, it was his kind, the mutants..Weren't they? He had never meant to start a fight against the humans, had never meant to hurt a human being, but he would fight against Stryker and his plans, because they were utterly ridiculous and insane...What did he want to achive with them, with his plans?

"Ah, of course not." Stryker nodded, an amost amused expression on his face. Charles felt like kicking him against the shin, but that surely would not help him much, probably just worsen his situation... But it would satisfy him..At least for some minutes. God, he could not stand that smugly grin. _Such a bastard_, Charles mind growled, and he was surprised about himself; he wasn't someone who cursed a lot.

"Please, I think we can talk this over." Charles began, his voice calm, shaking just slightly. He really tried to keep his ego, but Stryker and the whole situation made the walls of his self-confidence crumble. His throat was suddenly very dry because he realized that Stryker could lead them to their death, not only Erik's or his own, but the eradication of the mutant kind itself. He had everything he needed..

_No, that is impossible_, his mind snarled, _he is just one man, and there are far too many mutants out there. Someone will be able to stop him, if not you. _Right..He had to talk. Words were his strongest weapon, he just needed to bend and form them well.. "We are talking about living persons that you want to hunt down with my help. That would be like extermination of a race, and and surley you don't want to be a murderer.." Charles took a deep breath through his nose as he continued. "We have the right to be treaten like humans and-"

"No." Stryker cut him off, folding his hands in front of his stomach as he looked at Charles, his eyes small and emotionless. "You, and your kind, have no rights. At least no human rights. Because-" he leaned forward, his face full of aversion, eyeing Charles as if he was something ugly, something unhuman..

"- you-are-no-human." He spoke every single word with so much disgust and hate that Charles cringed back.

"That's ridiculous!" The telepath laughed out though he was nervous, not feeling like laughing at all. Actually, he felt more like crying, because this was too horrible to be true. "You can't be serious! That is totally intolerant!" Charles felt anger raise inside him. That was not fair! They were humans too, at least in some kind of ways, and just because they had powers didn't mean that they had no right to be treated as a human being!

"It's not intolerant; it's the truth." Stryker walked up to the back of the room, leaving Charles alone in front of the desk. Charles licked his dry lips, shaking his head as he turned around on the chair. Stryker stood next to the plump man. Charles furrowed his brow as he noticed the soliders at the wall. Where had they come from?

"Now, telepath." Oh, no name anymore?

_Lab rats have no name, don't they?, _Charles' inner voice rang inside his head, sounding surprisingly close to Erik's. _They have numbers._

No, no, they could not do them any harm, it was against the human rights, if anyone would find out about it then- Yes, there was the problem; if anyone would find out. It was likely that no one would ever know about this. Even if; what would they do then? Would they save them, or join Stryker? The world of mutants and humans was changing, and not to its best. One race had to rule, and it seemed that Stryker had the opinion that hunting and killing mutants was the only option to save the reign of the humans.

_Kill or be killed_, Charles thought, feeling, more than anything else, sad. Maybe he should pity the man, for his narrowed view on things, but he had no pity left; not for this man, and not in his current situation.

"Maybe you could tell us the coordinates for the hiding place of the children. I am sure that would save us all a lot of trouble-" Stryker suddenly said, and Charles felt sick again "- and pain."

Charles took a deep breath; his mind working and working to find a way to escape this hell, but of course there was no way to get away. One way or another, he would not get out of this room without having been harmed in any way.

"I am sorry, Sir-" he said, a mocking smile on his lips as he leaned back against the chair. "- I have no clue what you are talking about." He knew very well that he was in no position to tease them, but he could not help himself; better teasing than wimpering in fear. Anyway, it couldn't come any worse, couldn't it? They had already planned something for him, so there was no way out if it.

He would not tell anything, nothing. Raven and the others had to be safe, no matter what.

He would endure the pain, for them, because he wouldn't let them be found by this madman. He was responsible for them, so he would take care of them.

Stryker's eyes gleamed in hidden anger; he knew that Charles was teasing, and it made him mad. "As you wish." Stryker nodded towards the two soliders while he walked to the steel table, the plump man following him like a dog.

If Erik was here, would he be able to bend the table?

The soliders walked towards Charles, and he swallowed hard.

_Don't be afraid_, a voice hummed inside his head, and he recognized it as his own, _it will be over in no time._


	6. Chapter 5: A little bit of Torture

Hoho, a bit earlier this time :) Well, I hope yu like it, reviews are welcome. Have fun with reading and see you next week (probably).

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

He was dragged to the table, and still he made no attempt to fight. Maybe he was trying to keep his calm and arrogant attitude, maybe it was because he knew that a fight would be of no use. Oh, though, it could be for a use, but only if he would set the phoenix free, and that he would not do. And so he was silent as he was pressed down on the cool steel table, his face an emotionless mask, his lips pressed together into a grim line. Only his eyes were full of reproach, but no one cared to notice his gaze.

They strapped him down; scratchy velcro strips were tightly clasped around his ankles, his gaze all the while directed at the white ceiling. His heart was franticly beating in his chest, a steady _thump thump thump _in his ears, and his mouth felt dry. He had no clue what they would do to him, what they _could_ do to him.

Stryker leaned into his field of vision, together with the plump doctor. Charles noticed the men which were walking around in the room. Clattering could be heard, then something that sounded close to the moving of cardboard boxes and something metallic...

"I ask you one more time." Stryker said, slowly, as if Charles was slow on the uptake. It annoyed him. "Where are the children?"

Charles gave the man above him a dirty smile as he answered as calm and steady as he always did. "I have no clue what you are talking about, Sir. I think this is a big mistake." Yes, he had to keep talking, maybe they would stop doing what they were about to do. He knew that they would likely not, but it was worth a try. He was sure - he hoped - that there was still a bit of morality inside Stryker, sanity...

"Whatever you are about to do-" he began, and he shivered slightly as electrodes were placed against his temples, though he went on bravely "- I am sure we can _talk_ over this, in a...normal way. Not with so much-" he was about to raise his hand to underline his words with a gesture of his hand, but the scratchy plastic against his hand stopped him. "-trouble."

Stryker scowled, then a small smirk flickered over his lips and Charles' guts felt as if they were suddenly filled with ice. "I am sorry." he almost purred "You've had your chance to talk with me." he leaned upwards, and now Charles could barely see his face. Just his nose, and his chin. Well, if you could call it a chin; it was more like a head on a really thick and strong neck. "Anyway; I do not negotiate with mutants."

Charles bit his lips, and the anger was back inside his stomach, filling his lungs with burning power and making it hard to breath. He could hear the sing song of the phoenix in the back of his head, reminding him that there was always the option to end this with just a flick of his wrist, with a thought, but Charles ignored it; he would not give in, to neither of them.

"What a shame." he sighed instead, looking at the ceiling as if it was the most interesting thing of the world. "_It's not fair._" He whispered, to himself, but Stryker had catched his words.

"The world is never fair."

Charles laughed dryly, but he did not say another word. What could he have said? Stryker was not listening, and he could not hope for the help of the other men here in the room.

"What are you going to do to me?" he asked casually, his eyes still on the blank ceiling. It was an ugly ceiling, just white with no patterns or ornaments. Well, what else was to be expected from a lab ceiling? Charles had never looked at the ceiling of his own lab, but now he found himself asking if it was as bleak as the ceiling of this lab. He vaguely could remember that the ceiling in his lab was wooden. There were a lot wooden walls and ceilings in the mansion..

"I won't tell you our plans. It is not necessary for you to know anything about what I have planned, neither for you, nor for the rest of your 'gifted' kind." Charles eyes darted to the man. So much hate in his voice..distrust.. why?

"Are you jealous?" Charles asked bluntly, his mismatched eyes piercing right through Stryker's. Stryker looked down on the younger man as if he had told him a bad joke. "Or is it fear?"

Stryker snorted, leaning back down to Charles, his nose just mere inches away from Charles'. "Neither of them." he replied with a cold voice. Charles had expected him to say something else, to explain himself so that Charles would have something he could use against him, so he could lull him in words and calm him down, but Stryker just leaned back, taking several steps to the side.

Damn, maybe he would have been able to stop his plans, stopping him from doing something terrible wrong, but so he had no other choice but to lie on the steel table while doctors and professors stood around him.

"Dr. Teed?" one of the white clad doctors asked. Charles could not see him, but his voice was sounding almost eagerly.. "We are ready to inject the truth serum."

Charles' mismatched eyes darted to the voice to his side and every muscle in his body tensed. _Truth serum?_ Obviously they had to be kidding! "Of course, of course." Doctor Teed squeaked; his voice was unbearable.

"Whoa, whoa whoa, hey!" Charles tried to free himself out of the cuffs, but of course it was useless. "You can't do that!" He knew that he must be sounding desperate, almost panicky, but who wouldn't panic if someone is saying something about the use a truth serum. "That's.. That's not allowed!"

Charles could hear the laughter of Stryker who stood somewhere next to his head. "Who says so?"

"The...They.." Charles tried to find words, tried to find an answer, but he had none; Stryker was right, it was not forbidden to use it... "It's sick!" he then spat, trying to keep his voice as low as possible, tried to keep it serious, but he knew that he had to be sounding like a frightened child. Honestly? At the moment he felt like one..

"Oh, but why? Is there something that you're hiding from us?"

"No." he hissed with clenched teeth "Nothing."

Again Stryker's laughter was to be heard, and something cold was placed against the crook of his arm. He grit his teeth, his hands balled into fists. _Okay, calm down, calm down, CALM DOWN!_ His heart was beating wildly in his chest and he was sure he would tell them everything, he would tell them where the kids were, he would tell them about the phoenix, about Erik and him..

_NO!_ NO, he would NOT because he was a god damn telepath and he could HIDE his memories, he could go into his own mind and lock them away so that they would never find anything no matter how hard they would try!

And that was when Charles took a deep breath and pressed his eyes together. _Think, think, go inside your mind..._

He felt the prick of the nedel, but he was already inside his mind...

The darkness in front of his closed eyes turned into a room; dark wooden floor, caramel-colored walls, a green carpet on the floor...Bookshelves..A libary? Hm, something close to it, a mixture out of the libary of the mansion and Raven's and his flat in Oxford.

Charles tried to calm his breathing, his eyes moving under his closed lids.

He had had to rebuilt all the rooms inside his mind after the phoenix had shattered it. Here and there were some splinters missing, and small black cracks could be seen, sometimes a tiny hole. The colors were dim, slightly blurry, as if everything was drawn with watercolors. He had been in hurry as he had rebuilt his rooms of his mind, had wanted to go back to the real world, and in the last time he never had thought about going back into his mind to refine the missing pieces and colors. Well, it would do it for now. It _had_ to do it for now..

Charles gaze went outside the large window; he was sure the window of the flat hadn't been so big, and, in fact, the window looked more like one of the windows of the libary. It was foggy outside. The drugs; they were fogging his mind, trying to enter his little room.. He could already feel the chill, and as his eyes wandered to the door he noticed that it had a door gap; fog was already seeping into the room, and soon the whole room would be fogged, and therfore also Charles and the rest of his mind. There was no other way to hide now, all his other rooms were already full of the fog; his mere presence kept the fog from entering too soon. He had not much time, he knew that, and he had to hurry. Hastily he went around in the room, searching for the small peaces of his mind which were representing Raven and the others.

_Hurry,hurry, where are y_ou...Charles rubbed his arms with his hands, trying to get rid of the chill as his gaze went to the desk. _Oh there, there you are._ A smile crossed his lips as he found the small figures on the table. Hastily he walked up to the desk, brushing the paper aside as he took the figures in his hands.

One was a blue raven, the marbel reflecting the dim light of the fireplace, making the figure almost look alive. Then there was the small form of a banshee, or something that was supposed to be a banshee. Charles just knew that it was one. The figure was green and made of wood. Next was a yellow lion, made of glass, and a red marble. Charles smiled down at the figures, but he was pulled back to awareness as he noticed the fog around his feet. _Hurry_!, a voice in his mind rang.

Charles threw his head around, searching for a place to hide the figures. _Where, where? Don't panic, don't. _

Charles hurried to the bookshelves...Many books, too many, no one would find them if they were in a book, but the risk that they would be found was still too high; he had to lock them away!

The fog was at his knees now, and Charles gulped. He hurried back to the desk, rummaging in the drawer until he found a small metal box; it was big enough to have room for all four figures and small enough to be locked away.

The figures were placed in the box, and Charles let his gaze fly through the room. _Somewhere, somewhere_..Ha, this was his mind! If there was nothing to be found, he could create something.

And so Charles hurried to the wall next to an ugly picture of a landscape, why the hell was this ugly thing in his mind?, and placed his hand on to the wall. "My mind, my rules." he mumbled to himself, maybe because it was just too quiet here. He focused, his brow furrowed as he gazed at the wall.

_Bend, bend, you are like butter under my fingers.._ The wall stayed a wall. _ C'mon...! _It didn't work as he had wanted it to work out, the wall stayed as hard and unresponsive as before, and so he called a picture of Erik in front of his eyes; Erik, as he was bending the metal, the metal bending, melting..

He could feel a strange buzzing in his hands and then the wall wobbled under his fingers, melting away until Charles' hand was inside the wall. _Hah!, _a surge of triumph went through him. He would have to thank Erik.

The fog was at the level of his waist..

Charles pressed the metal box into the slimy mass of the wall and mere seconds later it had disappeard. _Okay, now, so far so good.._

Charles withdrew his hand. "No one knows where you are, no one does know, no one knows..."

He would forget them as well, but not fully; this was a part of them, just a tiny part of themselves inside his mind, the part that was representing them as they had left the mansion. Charles would only forget that they had been there at the mansion at the night of the attack. Though, now he had to form a new memory, a new part of them that he could remember, so he had something to say. They would know that something was wrong if he would tell them that he could not remember anything at all.

The wall turned back into its solid form and Charles felt a weird tingling inside his head. And, yes, there was only blankness as he tried to remember where the kids had been that night, as well as he tried to remember where they had gone.

He licked over his dry lips, hastily walking back to the desk. The fog was thick now, almost reaching his chest. There wouldn't be enough time to hide his feelings for Erik, also no time to hide the phoenix. Hell, he had barely time to create a new memory!

"Paper,paper,paper!" he mumbled frantically, his hands sliding over the desk, grabbing the next best scribbling block and a pen. He had to lift them up in the air because the fog was taking his sight on the paper.

_A sentence_, he needed a sentence, a spell , something that would order his mind what to DO.. Charles raised his chin as the fog went heigher and heigher. I don't know, he scribbled onto the paper, I don't know where they are. I don't know where they went. I told them to hide. I did not see them, I don't know...Maybe it would be better to add a place where they could possibly be, something to lead the CIA on a wrong track, but Charles had no time to add anything; he ripped the paper from the pad and placed it down on the desk with his outstreched hand and a loud thud.

Not a second too late; the fog was at his mouth now, thick and cold. "This is your mind.." , he told himself with a stern voice,".. you can do everything here." And so he jumped upon the chair, then he streched out his arms, his eyes tightly shut.

_You are light as a feather, you can fly, you are pulled upwards.._

He could feel a light breeze as he was lifted up into the air. It was a bit difficult to hold himself upwards, he still was not used to flying. He knew it was just a matter of time until the fog had reached the ceiling of his room, and even if he would tell his mind that his room had an endless ceiling, at some point the fog would get him." I...just hope it works.."

Suddenly a sharp pain went through his head, making his body in the real world arche against the bindings, and it took all his willpower to stay inside his mind. Thunder could be heard outside, and lightning lit up the room as the fire in the fireplace began to flicker dangerously.

Thunder? Thunder inside his mind, without any rain? There had never been thunder inside his mind, except-

The walls were shaking and Charles pressed his lips together as he tried to muffle the cry of pain that was about to escape his lips as another jolt of pain went through his head.

_The electrodes_, he dimly noticed. He could feel the metallic taste of blood in his mouth, and his awareness was drawn back to the lab, the room fading and flickering around him. _Nooo, nono, I can't go back, not now!_

"I ask you again, Xavier; where are the children!"

Charles' eyes flashed open, his breath unsteady and shallow as the pain drummed inside his head, drummed behind his eyes. "W-What are you talking a-about?" he asked, his voice a slur and his vision swimming. The lights above his head were funny, they were dancing in front of his eyes...

He arched his back and tried to free his arms as more pain was sent through his body. His heart was hammering in his chest, his head was swimming... The men above him looked like lurking shadows, he could not see their faces, the light was so bright and everything was swirling around and around...

"I-I don't know." he croaked. "I- I don't know where they've gone. I..I haven't seen them that night..." He cried out this time as the shocks through his body reached a new level of pain. "Please!" he nearly screamed. "I don't know!" And it was true; he did not know where they could have gone, even if he would try to remember, there was just blackness..

He was shivering badly, nausea was comming up. He could tast the blood in his mouth. Everything was blurring into colors, running together like watercolors in front of his eyes...His head did hurt.

His scream filled the air, his hands scraping over the metal of the desk as he threw his head from side to side, trying to get rid of the electrodes and the pain inside his head. He felt so dizzy, and his heart was hammering and hammering, he had the feeling it was trying to break free, and the light was so damn garish, so painfull in his eyes...

"Please!" he sobbed now, his body shivering badly because of the pain and its aftershocks."I don't know where they have gone! I went out of my room and down the halls..I-I just told them to h-hide!"

He felt cold, his hands balled into fist as he pressed his lips together. It was so hard to breath, sweat was trickling down his brows, his hair sticky against his forehear and neck and he could swear he had goose bumps...Was the table moving under him, or was it just the room that was spinning around and around?

"Don't play tricks, Xavier." A deep deep voice snarled somewhere above him, snarling like a monster. He would back away, if he could. And those shadows, they were reaching for him... And there where voices inside his head, he could swear, voices, mumbling and mumbling, a dark murmur, all together inside his head...But, he could not reach them with his powers; his powers were weak, suppressed by the heavy weight of the drug inside his mind, he could not reach them, the light of his power was just a faint blue ball of light at the back of his mind, hidden beneath the fog..

More pain went through him, ripping him apart and he screamed at the top of his lungs, his body trembling with spasms as his eyes rolled back. "I DON'T **KNOW**!" he screamed, sobbed, his voice shaky "I don't know, I don't know, I don't know where they are, please..." He coughed, his arms and legs twitching. His heart slowed down, down...And he had the feeling that suddenly everything was in slow motion, even as the man above him talked to him. It was sounding rather funny, and made him grin. If there just wasn't the pain, pain everywhere..

"He says the truth, sir."

A grunt was heard "He is playing with us. He must have been hiding the memories before we have drugged him. I knew we should have used the power-suppressor!" The words were spinning around and around in Charles head, making him even more dizzy. What were they talking about?

Someone leaned down to him, talking to him with a low and almost gentle voice. "Mr. Xavier, I am sure you want to help those children, right?...Maybe they are in trouble? I am sure you would not want that to happen. Just tell us where they are, then they will be alright, I promise."

He was under drugs, he was aware of that, and he was also aware that those men were evil; he would not tell them anything! If he would know anything... "I don't ..know where they are..." he slurred, his voice heavy.

"I am sure you could remember where they are, if you try to remember really really hard." the voice continued, sounding sickly sweet. "Where could they have gone? Where would you tell them to hide?"

Charles pressed his eyes together as the light became brighter and brighter; another spasm shot through his body, his arms and legs fighting against the resistance of the cuffs. "HNGR-" he pressed his lips tightly together. He was sure he would vomit soon.

"I-I would tell them-" he drew a shaky break through his nose, his head rolling from side to side till it stopped,his hot cheek leaning against his left shoulder now. "-...tell them..to..go to the flat..in Oxford." Mumbling could be heard, the rustle of paper and scribbling of a pen against paper.

"Oxford?" Charles nodded weakly. His head did hurt so much, and his eyes did hurt too, and he felt sick...Everything was spinning around and around, even as he held his eyes tightly shut.

"Where? Where in Oxford?" the voice asked, this time with more interest, the soothing tone gone.

Charles tried to remember, he really did, but somehow everything in his head was so blurry.. "Hn..I..I don't know.." The only sentence that was clear against the fog, red letters in front of his closed eyes; I-don't-know

"Then try to remember!" a deep voice above his head snarled, and another surge of pain was sent through him. He screamed in anguish, trying to lash out, but again his movements were stopped by the velco cuffs.

"_P-Please_!" he croaked, his eyelashes fluttering. "I-I can't..I..I can't remember!I-I was -" a sharp hiss of pain "- haven't been there for months!"

Of course he knew where the flat was; of course, he would never forget his beloved flat in Oxford where he had lived at least as long as in the mansion, but.. His mind told him one thing; I don't know. And that was what he said, that he did not know.

He screamed as loud as he could, his lungs burning, as more pain nearly wrenched his body apart.

Why wouldn't he tell them? It was just his flat in Oxford...

But, what if they found something, anything that would give them a hint? What if they found his works for the term papers about genetics? What if they would destroy the flat while rummaging in it? The small part of him that was at least a bit clear told him to shut his mouth; he would not say anything, nothing, they couldn't torture him forever, at some point they had to stop...

He arched against the bindings, his back curving off of the table while his arms and legs were trying to lash out. A new level of pain shot through him, followed by another surge, his muscles tensing as every fibre of his being was in pain! He was screaming, crying, throwing his head from side to side while tears broke free. If he could just hide inside his mind, if he just could block out the pain, but he could not because everything was aching, distracting him from his focus - he could not because his mind was full of the god damn fog, full of the drug.

"Does it hurt?" the voice to his right side sneered. He could hear the contempt, could hear the malicious joy...

He cried out as the level was raised once again.

"Does it hurt?"

_Yes, yes it does hurt, it does!_ He screamed inside his head, but he was not able to get the words out of his mouth. Maybe he was too stubborn, too proud, but maybe it was just because of the pain...

He sobbed, his fingernails digging into his palms as another scream escaped his lips. His throat was hoarse as he nodded "Y-yes!" he sobbed, his body twitching on the table. "YES!"

"Do you want us to stop?"

He sobbed, more tears running down his face. The pain was steady now, pounding through his body, through his head... "Y-Y-**YES**!" He begged, sobbing. "P-Pleaaahaahas.. **AHHHHHAAAH**! P-Please st-**STOP**!" His brain was too fogged with the drugs to feel ashamed or pathetic. Everything was spinning, he felt sick to the stomach. He had to cough violently, foam dripping down the corners of his mouth and his body twitched incessantly, his eyelids fluttering.

_Please stop, please, it does hurt!_

"Then you have to tell us where the flat is."

Charles let out a desperate sob as he squeezed his eyes together, his lips trembling as he tried to catch his breath. It was so hard to breath..."Hn..Hn..I..I d-don't rem-remember!"

He did remember; he did know where it was, so why shouldn't he tell them, they would find it anyway...He was too stubborn, even in his drugged state. He was not quite sure if that was good or bad, but certainly it made things worse for him. Well, it didn't matter anymore, did it? He would not give in, even if the pain shot through his body like fire..

"What?" the voice asked sanctimoniously.

"I-aahaa...I DON'T **KNOW**!" Charles screamed, writhing. He was crying badly now, his lowerlip trembling."I-I don't...AAHH**AHAA**.. **I-I DON'T KNOW**!"

God, this pain was becoming unbearable!

_Please, make it stop, make it stop, it does hurt I-_

"Stop it now!" A cool voice ordered. " It's enough, we have a hint. That will do it for now." Murmur of disagreement was heard, but the surges stopped. "I bet he does know it." Someone murmured. "We should be more strict with him."

Charles' body went slack against the resistance, trembling with the aftershocks as he tried to calm his breath; his hair was wet with sweat and stuck to his head, his breath was rattling. Everything was blurry as he opened his eyes, his lids fluttering and his head lolling to the side.

"Well, I think that was something for the start." a smooth voice purred, and a hand came down to pat his hair. He would have growled, if he had had the strenght, if he would be in his right mind... Right now, however, everything was blurry and he felt dizzy, sick, his throat was dry and raw from screaming, and god, his body did hurt so damn much! And his head! He had the feeling his head was about to explode!

He could hear the faint scribbling of pens, papers were rustling, the men around him mumbled. God, everything was spinning around and around and around...

"Well, that was a great help now, wasn't it?" Was that Doctor Teed's annoying voice? Charles could not quite tell, his mind was too dizzy..

They would search for his name..The flat, it was rented in his name...Charles took a heavy breath through his nose, his lungs burning painfully.

"Well..." A shadow leaned down, the light from the neon lamps too bright against his eye to see any details of the man above him. Though, it seemed to be Doctor Teed; the man above him was small and plump, fat fingers tugging at Charles' hair, smoothing it behind his ears in an almost lovingly manner. "What do you thing about a little chat?"

Charles was too drugged and too weak to laugh, but he would have, if he could have. A talk, after such a torture? Maybe he would feel hate and disgust, but now he simply felt too tired and sick, his mind too blank to think of anything else than the horrible pain that was still present in his body.

Somehow he felt betrayed, as if they had betrayed his trust. Well, they had betrayed him, them, somehow...

"I..would not...know what...we..could talk...about" he slurred.

"Oh..." Doctor teed chirped. "Hm..Why don't we talk about...you?"

Charles managed a shallow laughter. "I...don't think..that I..have anything..to tell you...about me.."

Doctor Teed sighed as he leaned back up. "Oh,I think I do know something." his voice was too cheerful, sending a shiver down Charles' back. "Why don't we talk about your..powers?"

"I thought..you already know..that I am..a telepath." he mumbled, pulling in a shaky breath through his clenched teeth. He knew what he meant, he must have seen the video as well. He would not tell them anything, not about the phoenix.

Teed grabbed his shoulder, squeezing it painfully as he answered with his squeaky voice. "Oh, I am not talking about those powers, Mr. Xavier. I think you know what I mean." He pinched a little harder, making Charles gasp. "I think you should speak up now. We don't want you to get hurt any further, don't we?"

A wry smile crossed Charles' lips as he closed his eyes. "I..am sorry, but..I don't know..what you are..talking about."

His screams of pain filled the room for the next fifteen minutes.

* * *

><p>Note<em>:<em> _The CIA really used drugs as truth serum back after the second world war. (LSD( german name) for example. I think in English it is called acid?) The project was called MKULTRA. If you look back, there were a lot of drugs used as an attempt to manipulate the mind of people back in the second world war and in the cold war..._


	7. Chapter 6: A Little Bit Of Peace

**Chapter 6**

The first thing he felt was his bruised jaw and his black eye; honestly, they did hurt quite a lot. He shifted slightly, trying to stretch his arms, and that was when he realized that he could not move them; in fact they were tied in a rather unnatural position. Erik opened his eyes, blinking against the garish light as he looked down to his arms and groaned in frustration.

"Das is' nich' euer Ernst.." his jaw did hurt with every word he spoke.

A straitjacket, they really had put him into a straitjacket! It made him angry and he tried to move and free his arms, but of course that was of no use. _I should know that_, he snarled to himself. After all, he had spent a lot of time with Shaw, and straitjackets were nothing new to him..

_Well, always worth a try_, he thought dryly. His heart was hammering; not that he was afraid, no! He was not afraid, it was just a stupid jacket, god damn it! If it had metal buckles...

Erik dropped his chin onto his chest and growled angrily. It made him furious, was sending chills down his back..

He tried to put the memories of Shaw and his treatments into the back of his mind, and to his surprise it did work. _At least something. After all there are other things to worry about,right?_

He took a look around; Charles was still not here, and that worried him. How long had he been out? He winced as he remember why he had been unconscious. _Charles,_ his mind growled, but he was not as angry as he had imagined to be; yes, Charles had entered his head without his permission, but only because he had wanted to help him. _And why? _Erik snorted, angry at himself, _because you idiot got yourself in trouble...  
><em>

_And Charles.._.If only he had listened to him, who knew what they had done to him, what they were doing to him... Erik's stomach clenched and he pressed his lips into a small line. His arms did hurt.

_I could dislocate my shoulder_, he mused, his gaze wandering over the reflection of the neon light on the glass floor, _but then I would need someone to put it back in, and I don't think that Charles will be in any state to help me after I've crippled myself.._

And the last thing he wanted was to walk around with useless arms. Honestly, he was just half a metal-bender if he could not use his arms.

_Such a shame_, he sighed inwardly, still angry at himself,_ I should have focused my training on moving things without my hands.._

Technically it should not be too difficult, after all he could FEEL the metal, as if it was a limb of his body, but he would better not risk anything.

His gaze turned up to the camera, and his eyes narrowed. It pissed him off that they could see everything they were doing inside here. "Gefällt euch, was ihr seht?" he snarled, a spark of smug satisfaction running through him. At least sometimes German was usefull..

He rolled his eyes, maybe at himself, as he continued to stare at the camera. Maybe it would explode, if he stared long enough...Although...Wasn't there metal in a camera?_ Cameras work with electricity, and doesn't electricity have something to do with magnetic fields...?_

Erik smirked as he narrowed his eyes a bit more, his powers reaching out to search for the magnetic field. He could see the sparks as he tugged at the electricity. It would be of no use to destroy the camera now, they would simply install a new one, and so he drew back his powers.

He would gladly destroyed that damn thing, but that would cause them even more trouble. Well, the fact that he COULD destroy the camera was satisfying enough, at least for now.

He could not tell how long he sat there, staring ahead with nothing to do. The constant pain in his awkwardly bent arms annoyed him, and the fact that his brow itched while he could not scratch it didn't make it any better.

It had to be at least one hour after he had woken that he heard footsteps echoing through the hall. He raised his head and stretched his neck to see who was comming towards his cell.

He could hear two pair of feet, no words were spoken, and Erik streched his neck a little further; now he could see them, the soliders with their helmets, carrying something along the corridor, but no Charles..._Wait_, he corrected himself, his eyes widening as he realized that they did not carry a bundle of white clothes but Charles; they dragged him along the corridor, his head hung down, his wavy hair covering his face, and he wasn't able to walk on his own at all.

Well, the soldiers did not help him walking, they simply dragged him down the corridor without caring that his feet were dragged over the floor. It made Erik angry, even more than he already was. For now, however, he was not able to do anything.

He waited till they were at the door; one of the soliders opened the door with a key, the otherone pushed Charles into the cell.

Charles, who already had not been able to hold himself on his feet during their walk back to the cell, fell down to the floor with a soft thud. He did not try to stand up, and the soliders left without taking a look back.

"ASSHOLES!" Erik could not stop himself from screaming, but they could not hear him through the thick glass anyway. Maybe he should show a bit more manners.. _Fuck my fucking manners_, he thought to himself, _there is no need to be nice and friendly to those bastards. _

Erik's angry stare turned into a worried look as he tried to crawl towards Charles; well, he more pushed himself towards him. At least now the glassfloor was for use...

Erik could feel pain, not his own, but it was just a dim ache in the back of his mind. _Charles must have blocked the pain transmitter..._

"Charles?" Erik asked carefully as he stopped next to Charles. Great, now his knees did hurt as well, but he could cry over that small amount of pain later. He would have run his hand through the soft brown hair of Charles, which was rather sweat soaked right now, but sadly his arms were still tied. "Hey..."

Charles did not answer, he just took a deep breath which was sounding more like a wheeze; a rather pained and rattling wheeze. _Caused by a lot of screaming_, Erik thought while he looked down on to the telepath; Charles was lying on his side, his hair covering most of his face. Erik could see the parted red lips which looked as if Charles had bitten down on them hard, and he could see the trembling of his body.

"Charles, can you hear me?"

Charles huffed and Erik could feel a slight tingling inside his head, wich soon turned into an unplesant pain. _"Can hear you..." _Erik winced, because Charles mental voice was surprisingly loud. His voice was slurred.

"Sorry.." the telepath croaked, and it seemed to take him a lot of effort to get this single word out of his mouth. The pain inside Erik's head ebbed away. "It's okay." Erik assured. He felt guilty for the other man's condition.

"Not...your fault..." Charles mumbled, his voice sounding even more slurred than inside Erik's head. Every word seemed to pain his raw throat. "I fear it is..." Erik replied.

Charles sighed, raising his head of the cold floor to meet Erik's gaze; alone this simple gesture caused him to pant with effort. Erik could see now that the mismatched eyes of the younger man were almost black, the pupils dilated.

"What have they done to you?" he whispered.

Charles managed a weak smile, even now he managed to smile!, and closed his eyes. "Ah...we...had a...nice talk..." He pressed his lips together and suddenly seemed uncomfortable. _"Should go somehwere else to talk..." _Charles' voice hummed inside Erik's head, still a bit too loud.

"And where?" he asked out aloud. It was not like they could simply go somewhere else..

_"Do you trust me..?" _Charles slurred inside his head. Erik nodded; of course he did. But, it was a bit hard to tell if Charles was all too trustworthy at the moment, since he seemed pretty much drugged. He even seemed to have problems with controlling his powers.. _"'S okay." _Charles' voice echoed through his head.

Erik sighed; he would rub his forehead, if he had a free hand..."Alright."

Suddenly, without a warning, Erik felt a pull inside himself, and he nearly yelped in surprise. Of course his first reaktion was to struggle against this pull, but Charles' voice inside his head calmed him down. _"It's alright."_

Erik closed his eyes as his vision began to blurr, and he could not help but ask himself what exactly Charles was doing. The strange feeling faded as soon as it had started, and the pulling stopped abruptly.

Erik was sure that his head was spinning, and he did not dare to open his eyes, but Charles soft voice spoke to him, "It's alright, you can open your eyes."

Erik hesitated for a moment but then slowly opened his eyes. "Whoa..." he blinked several times as he looked around; they were on a field, green grass growing under his shoes. There were some trees, several trees, and the sun stood high, blinding his vision so that he had to shield his eyes. Erik noticed the soft whisper of the wind in the trees; the breeze was warm and welcomely. He raised his arms, his free arms, and noticed that he wore his leather jacket as well as green pullover and his favourite trousers.

"That's..." he trailed off, swirling around to face Charles. In the distance he could see a house, and he was aware that it had to be the mansion. But, it was winter...There had to be snow...So, they were inside his head? Or, inside Charles' head?

"Actually we are on an astral level. I picked the first one and formed it to this little place." Charles stood some steps away from him, his hands inside his beige chinos; he wore a white shirt and a dark blue vest, his hair was neatly combed to the side and his head was tilted as he watched Erik with curious blue eyes.

Blue eyes, not mismatched ones...

"I..never knew that you are able to do something like that..." Erik breathed; he was still mesmerized by how real this all seemed.

Charles just shrugged his shoulders, almost as if all of this was nothing, as if it was the easiest thing of the world to create whole worlds on an astral level. How the hell did that work anyway? Had all of this been made by Charles? Had he taken it out of a memory? "Yes, well...I would be boring if you'd know everything about me." Erik grinned at that comment.

Charles walked towards him and raised his hand, and suddenly a the grass rose from the ground, only mere inches in front of Erik. It was a bit weird to watch as the grass formed into the form of a small table, bending like wire till it turned into wood. "Boaster." Erik huffed, and Charles grinned as he flicked his fingers; the wind swirled some leaves up which began to turn into the form of two cups and a kettle.

Mere minutes later Erik and Charles sat at the table, both with a cup of tea in their hands and a chessboard in front of them on the table.

"You are still a boaster." Erik hummed, though he could not hide his admiration; the smooth and cold porcelain of the tea cup felt so real in his hand, and the taste of the tea was more than great. Erik recognized the cup from the mansion; it was one of the old ones, the ones that had belonged to Charles' grandmother, and even the small pink flowers below the golden edge and the small dark veins of the old porcelain had been added by Charles. "How did you...How do you do that?" he found himself asking as he placed the cup down on the table with a soft clank.

"Pss, I don't want to ruin the magic." Charles smirked as he took another sip of tea. _This little smug bastard_

Erik rolled his eyes and took one of the pawns in his hand; it was smooth and cold, but not like the cup. Erik noticed that the figure was made of metal and he raised and eyebrow. "What?" Charles asked sheepishly, sounding amused. "I thought you would like to have some metal around you since you hadn't had any in some days."

Erik snorted in amusement, placing the the black figure back down. "So, why don't you turn all of this in metal." he gestured towards the trees and the landscape. "Could you do that?"

Now it was Charles turn to raise his eyebrow "Dear, why should I do that?"

"To please me." Erik answered and leaned his elbows on the table; it was a really uncomfortable position since the table was a lot smaller than a normal table; they had to sit cross-legged in front of the small thing, which suddenly began to turn to metal. "Pleased enough?" Charles asked with a sighed, and Erik had to grin. "No, not really." His grin widened as he saw that Charles was rolling his eyes in humorous annoyance. "But it will do it for now."

They both stared into their cups of tea. Erik was sure that he had almost finished his tea, but now his cup was full again. "So, tell me now; how do you do this?"

Charles sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Ah, too much to explain. Well, basicly I am just able to transfer my thoughts into the astral level. I can form anything I want here, I just have to think of it."

Erik tilted his head. "You can do that inside of minds as well, can't you?"

Charles nodded. "Yes."

"But, what is the difference?" Erik gestured towards Charles, who watched him carefully. "I mean, it is the same as being inside a mind..."

Charles sighed again and shook his head. "No, it's not the same. A mind is a closed level, something that belongs to a person; there are hidden the deepest thoughts and feelings of others, and it is much more difficult to enter a human, or mutant, mind. If I create something inside a mind it will turn into a memory, something that will affect the mind. Here, however-" he gestured towards the sky. "- here I am free to create whatever I want. Whatever I create in here, it does not have any meaning to a mind; it is just made of astral energy, psionic energy. Also, everyone is free to come here, and this level will remain as long as I want it to remain. And-" he raised his index finger "- it does not affect our mind, well, not technically, because we ARE our mind. "

Erik looked down at the chessboard, his fingers sliding over the soft wood of the board. "You truly are powerfull.." he mumbled, more to himself than to Charles.

It was true; he had never thought that Charles could do anything like that. He had always known that Charles was a telepath, that he could read the mind of others... He had also known that Charles could control people, and that he was able to use telekinesis, and he had also known that there was the phoenix inside of Charles, but he had never considered that the spectrum of his powers was that great...

It was almost, almost, frightening to know that one man alone had so much power. Even without the phoenix force Charles would be one of the most powerful mutants on the whole fucking world...

"Are you..okay?" Charles asked, concern in his voice and his brow slightly furrowed. Did he know what was going on inside his mind?

"I was just wondering.." Erik answered slowly, his hand hovering over the pawns; he could feel the metal, and to his surprise he could also move the tiny pieces of metal. "Why can I move the pawns? I mean, they are not made of real metal.."

Charles sipped at his tea as he answered thoughtfully "Well, that's simple; your mind knows that you are able to control metal. This here-" he waved his hand "- seems like the real world to us - on the first glance."

"So-" Erik raised his index finger and the black pawns flew up into the air where they continued to hover as he held them with his 'powers'. "I am not able to create anything because my mind knows that I don't have the abilities to change anything in the real world?"

Charles nodded, smiling "Indeed. Your mind is used to be able to manipulate metal, not to manipulate astral energy; it is simply too illogical for it. My mind does know that this is not the real world. I can see over the border of reality and illusion. That is why I can change and create anything I want." He raised his hand and began to draw a shape into the air. Small tendrils of blue and green light followed the movements of his fingers, and before Erik could realize what was happening a small blue bird flew up into the sky, chirping brightly. They both stared up to the sky, their eyes following the way of the bird until it disappeared in the distance.

"It's amazing." Erik admitted, the pawns settling back onto the chessboard as he lowered his hand. Charles smile widened and Erik could see the hint of pride behind the stunning blue eyes.

"It is like drawing..." Charles hummed, and thoughtfully added "And like physics."

Erik chuckled as he leaned back, his hands on the grassy ground to brace himself. The grass tickled his skin and felt so very real.. "You're seeing equations and numbers flying through the air?"

Charles laughed, placing his cup on the metal table. "Hm...Not quite like that, but kind of, yes."

Erik shook his head; to him this was almost unbelievable. Charles began to fold his hands on his lap, his sparkling eyes turning serious as he cleared his throat "However, we are not here to admire my artistic talent, we are here to talk about our current situation."

Erik felt a shiver running down his spine as he began to remember his current situation, and for one moment he was sure it was much more difficult to lift his arms... He was uncomfortable and hastily placed his arms back on the table, as if to make sure that they were not tied to his body. Somehow he felt better now that he could see them.

"True." he agreed. "So.." he paused, his eyes on Charles who calmly met his gaze. "What did they do to you?..What happened?" All the happiness that he had felt before seemed to drain out of the air until nothing but the soft wind was left.

Charles closed his eyes and sighed heavily; to Erik even his mental-self seemed tired. "They've wanted me to talk." he said, his voice as tired as he was looking right now. "Luckily I have been able to block my memory of the hidingplace of the children..." he tensed slightly "Though, I fear they know about the phoenix now.." he opened his eyes, giving Erik an apologetic smile. "I just could not bear it any longer, and I think you've noticed, they've drugged me, so I was pretty much helpless..." he bit his lower lip, angry at himself for being too weak, and now it was Erik's turn to sigh. "Idiot." he mumbled, leaning forward to place his hand over Charles'; it felt surprisingly warm and soft... "I don't blame you for telling them..."

"I've told them they are in Oxford." Charles blurted "But I know they are not...Damn, I've liked that flat.."

"Charles!" Erik more than hissed "Now is not the time to be sad about a flat."

"I know, I know.." Charles mumbled and rubbed his hand over his face "I just wish I would have been faster...I should have been able to hide every memory, but now they know more than they should and I-"

Erik rolled his eyes and leaned over the table to push his hand against Charles' forehead, almost causing the telepath to fall backwards. "Idiot." he huffed, and Charles looked at him with confusion in his eyes, rubbing his forehead. "You've been tortured, and I bet no one would have been able to grasp a clear thought during it, and certainly no one would have been able to hide any memory at all. Be glad that you were able to hide the memory of the kids. At least they are safe now.."

Charles laughed sadly "Oh,I fear they won't be safe for much longer. The CIA might find some hints in the flat, and ..." he trailed off, his brow furrowed as he licked over his dry lips "..I fear Stryker wants to rebuild Cerebro. That's why he needs us, and technically also Hank. He has the basic constructions of it, but with Hank's and your help he would be able to rebuild it much quicker..." Charles voice became smaller and smaller, till he trailed off. Erik hissed in anger as he leaned back; this damn Stryker! "Cerebro..." That would explain why Stryker was keeping them in here, and it would also explain why he was searching for the children in such a desperate kind of way; because he was needing Hank's help. Though, Erik was sure that Stryker would find a way to rebuild Cerebro without Hank...

"I am not going to help him." Erik snarled. "I would rather die than help them."

Charles visibly flinched at that comment, having a rather pained expression on his face. "They have their ways, Erik.." he mumbled, his hands sliding over the metal table as he stared at his fingers. "Though, I won't cooperate with them either, of course.." Erik nodded; of course he knew that Charles would not cooperate, not willingly...

_They have their ways..._How many drugs did they have in storage? WHAT for drugs? Erik eyed the telepath, and suddenly he was aware that they would use Charles, would use him to find other mutants, and suddenly he could understand why Charles looked so sad...

"Don't worry, we'll find a way to prevent it." he assured, even if he was not sure if that was even possible. Charles smiled, slightly, nodding while his dark hair was hiding his eyes. "Of course.."

They sat there in silence, the soft wind ruffling their hair. A lonely bird was singing somewhere in the trees...Erik took another sip of his tea, somehow wishing it was coffee instead, and watched the shadows of the pawns against the wooden chessboard. Would they return to this place? Would HE be be able to return to this place?

"I could help you." Charles offered.

"Did you read my mind again?" Erik asked, almost snarled.

"No, I did not. " Charles answered calmly. "I can read persons very well, at least the ones I know. I don't need to read minds all the time..." Erik snorted but did not reply, instead he tugged at the grass. "Do you want me to help you? You could be able to go back here without my presence."

Erik huffed and nodded slightly "Alright."

Charles stood up, and Erik followed the other man with his gaze as he went to one of the trees. Mere minutes later he returned with a green leaf in his hand.

"What do you need that for?" Erik asked, his eyebrow raised "I thought you've wanted to teach me how to come back here."

Charles sat down next to him on the grassy ground. "Well, that is still my intention, yes."

The telepath raised the leaf so that it was directly in front of Erik's face. "This little thing will help you to come back here."

Erik grinned, clearly amused "A leaf? And what exactly will this...little friend of yours do to help me?"

Charles grimaced, nearly pouting as he heard the amusement in Erik's voice, though his blue eyes shone as bright as ever "Well, dear, this 'little friend of mine' will be a symbol. I will put this leaf into your mind, and if you want to come back here the only thing you will have to do is to go into your mind and take the leaf into your hands. The rest will work on its own."

Erik stared at the leaf, then at Charles. "Honestly, I don't think that will work." he croaked and cleared his throat. "I mean, I am not even able to enter my mind like you are able to do..." Well, he had never really tried to enter his mind, but he was sure he would utterly fail. Only telepaths seemed to be able to do something like that.

Charles smiled, his eyes curving upwards. He almost looked like a cat..."Well, that's no problem. You just have to THINK of the leaf."

Erik grunted, disbelieve clearly written on his face "And if I think of a normal leaf? If I see a leaf? I mean, I would always return to this place..."

Charles tilted his head, his lips still turned upwards into a mischievous smile. The sun made his milky white skin gleam, and Erik asked himself if he was gleaming as well. A quick glance at his own skin told him that he was not gleaming, probably because his skin was some tones darker than Charles'. "No. Erik, you are not stupid. Your mind will KNOW when it has to lead you back to this place. Believe me, it is simplier than you might think."

Erik grimaced, because he was sure that it would not be THAT easy, and Charles laughed, then he narrowed his eyes and the color of the small leaf changed from bright green into a brilliant blue. "See." he beamed "Now there is no way that you will mix up this leaf with any other leaf."

Erik leaned forward, eyeing the leaf carefully; the small veinlets of the leaf were a pulsing blue, looking like trails of pure light, while the membrane was a shade darker, though Erik could see the sunlight shining through it. It was beautiful.

"Take it." Charles said, his hand outstreched. Erik stared at the leaf, then he slowly took from Charles' hand. The leaf was soft and almost warm as it lay on his palm.

Small sparks began to light up and the leaf turned into blue tendrils of light, which seeped into Erik's hand. Erik could feel a warm tingling, which began to spread from his arm to the rest of his body. The leaf on his hand was gone. Charles smiled happily, though Erik could see that he was even more tired-looking than before.

"Maybe we should go back." Erik said calmly as he took one of Charles' hand. It felt so real... A part of him almost thought that this was real, that their cell and Stryker had been a nightmare..."You look tired."

"Oh my." Charles uttered, clearly not pleased that even his mental-self was worn out. " I am tired, I fear. But-" he waved off "- it's okay. We still do need a plan, and you don't even know how to leave this room - without me."

Erik rolled his eyes "We can continue later." Actually Charles was right; they did need a plan, and every minute they could spend together was precious, but Charles' health was much more important right now. After all, both of them needed their strenght for the comming days...

Charles pressed his lips together, his blue eyes wandering to the mansion in the distance. "Later we might have no time.." he turned his gaze to the chessboard "And I thought we might start a game of chess. I've missed that quite a lot.." There was sadness in those blue eyes.

Erik eyed the telepath for several minutes, then he sighed "Okay. But, just one game, alright?" He had barely time to brace himself as Charles literally jumped into his arms. "You are the best boyfriend on the whole wide world." the younger man chirped, grinning down at Erik, who looked rather startled.

"Oh,well, I do know that. I am totally awesome..."

Charles wrinkled his nose as he leaned back up, the sun behind him blinding Erik so that he could barely see Charles' features. "Not awesome." He pouted playfully. "Groovy."

Erik took in a deep breath through his nose as he tried not to roll his eyes. "Of course, how could I dare to say I am awesome when I am groovy..."

Charles smirked and stood up, smoothing down his shirt as he happily walked around the table to take a seat. "My turn?" he asked, even if he knew the answer already.

"Of course." Erik answered as he pushed himself upwards. "Ladies first."

Erik grinned as he looked at the chessboard; he could swear that Charles gave him a stare that would have killed him if glances could actually kill. "You will see, Erik Lehnsherr- " Charles said with his smooth and polite voice, a small grin visible on his lips "-one day you will regret saying things like that."

"Why would I?" Erik smirked, clearly amused, as he waited for Charles to make the first move. "It makes much too much fun."

Charles took a deep breath as he moved his pawn. "Well, dear friend, maybe it does make fun now, but you'll see...One day I'll have my revenge."

Erik huffed as he moved his pawn with swift movement of his finger. "Don't try to fool me, Charles, I know that revenge is not your way of solving problems." For one moment Erik thought he had ruined the mood, that Charles would be hurt, that he would remember that Erik himself had been obsessed with taking revenge on Shaw, but Charles just raised both of his hands and shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe. But, maybe I came to the conclusion that revenge can be fun too, like... no sex for the next twenty years."

Erik, who had taken a sip of tea, spat his tea back into his cup as he choked. "You wouldn't dare." He glared at Charles, who hummed with a grin on his lips. "Just saying."

It almost felt like before, as if they were back in the mansion, as if everything was alright; no CIA, no humans, no phoenix...

But, this was not real.

It was just another illusion.

* * *

><p>Translation:<p>

Das is' nich' euer Ernst = You must be kidding! ( or = You're not serious, are you?)

Gefällt euch, was ihr seht? = Do you like what you see?


	8. Chapter 7: Doors

Omg, I am so sorry for the lack of update! D: I have a busy and troublesome time, so please excuse me! I hope U like this chapter. I will try to update as soon as possible, though I can't promise anything (but I will update.).

I wish you all a happy new year :)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

The days blurred into each other and it was hard to tell which day it actually was.

They got food, twice a day, at least that was what Erik assumed. They were probably here for two weeks now. Maybe even three. It was so difficult to tell. They were allowed to shower, or better, they were dragged to the showers, twice a week, maybe, he could not tell.

They were left alone for most of the time, Erik had to admit he was glad about that, but sometimes they came; then they took Charles, or him, trying to get information about mutants and their own powers. Of course they told them nothing.

The torture was not horrible, not as horrible as the times with Shaw; Erik could handle it, not very well, but quite good. Sometimes his whole body ached, not because they had beaten him, no, they never used raw violence; it was more because of the spasms and the fight of his body against the plastic cuffs of the stupid plastic table. The humans never really intended to damage his body, probably because they needed it, him, fully functional.

Yes, Erik was getting along pretty well, considering his current circumstances, and he would be proud of himself, if he would actually care. Actually he cared more about Charles' health than his own.

It was Charles who had some problems with getting along, probably because he never had experienced any kind of torture; maybe you could say the inner fight with the phoenix had been a kind of torture, but Erik doubted that it could be compared with the their current situation.

It were the drugs that muddled up Charles' mind, their influence making him dizzy and unresponsive for several hours. Erik had no clue on which kind of drugs they were putting Charles, but he always looked totally wrecked up when he was brought back to the cell. Though, Erik hardly believed that he himself looked any better.

They had taken Charles, for hours he was gone now, and Erik began to worry.

He paced through the cell, his hands behind his back, his face grim. He was very glad that he was free of that damn straitjacket.

_"They are coming." _Charles had said, his gaze directed at the men who walked up to their cell. There had been worry in his mismatched eyes, his brow furrowed.

_"They are up to something." _Erik had answered, eyeing the men with hate in his eyes; the anger and disgust was clearly visible on his face. He had been so angry, he always was so angry at them.

Charles had been calm, his hands in the pockets of his white trousers. _White does not suit him_, Erik had thought as he eyed Charles, _he is so pale and his hair too dark, he looks like a ghost. . Blue, he should wear blue, it fits his eyes and his red lips..._

He had known that Charles had been nervous, more than nervous, but the telepath had appeared as calm and collected as always.

They would pick him up today, not Charles, he had been sure of that. They had taken Charles to the lab yesterday, they wouldn't come for him today.

He had been wrong, so wrong.

_"Be calm, Erik."_ Charles had whispered, his mismatched eyes serious. _"Be calm."_

And then they had grabbed him, Charles, and had dragged him along the corridor. Charles had looked over his shoulder, to Erik who had been standing at the glass door, his hands pressed onto the cool glass; his eyes followed Charles who had smiled an encouraging smile until he was dragged around the corner, out of Erik's sight into the darkness of the labyrinth of corridors.

That must have been five hours ago.

Erik growled as he looked down onto his right wrist. He missed his watch. The garish light was blinding him, and he was tired.

And he was worried, really worried. He had a weird feeling, his stomach hurt and his heart was pounding wildly. _ Charles will come back_, he told himself sternly, _he will come back, he always does._

It was not Charles who came back but four soliders.

Erik was ready to fight them, was ready to hurt them, trying to lash out at them, trying to hurt them-

_Be calm._

Of course he should be calm, staying calm, because it would make things easier, for them and for himself, but he was not someone who could stay calm. Yes, rage had always been a problem of his.

Eventually they managed to wrestle him down. The glass floor was cold under his cheek, and his breath was heavy. If there would be any metal he would kill them,but...

They yanked him upwards by his arms, not being really gentle with him, then they dragged him along the long corridor. "Stay calm, or we will hurt you." One of the soliders said; his voice was young, he was probably twenty two years old, and Erik knew that he was afraid; he could hear it in his voice even if the man tried to sound strong.

Erik did not try to fight against them, actually he was really calm.

_Better stay calm_, he thought to himself as he was dragged along the main corridor. _I don't want us to get into trouble...More trouble..._

He would like to hurt them, all of them, those stupid humans, but he knew that he could not. He didn't want them to hurt Charles... And , even if he managed to break free, where would he go? He had no clue where Charles was, and he wouldn't go without him.

Erik knew that Charles had the map of the building in his head, well, technically, since he didn't saw the map itself.

_"I made one, a map, inside my head."_ the telepath had said, his index-finger tapping against his forehead to illustrate his words. _"I can remember every hallway and I know the numbers of the doors, but there are too many small corridors and too many locked doors, and we won't be able to explore them."_

The metal-bender had chuckled quietly, his head leaned against the cold glass wall. _"It's useful to have a photographic memory."_

The telepath had smiled.

Erik winced in discomfort as he was shoved into a room abd he nearly stumbled but was held upright by the men around him; their hands were digging into his skin, and they would probably leave bruises.

_Diese Schweine._

His eyes wandered through the room; it was a small room, empty besides a chair in the middle of it. There was a glass wall, but Erik could not see anything behind it, the glass being too dark and reflective. The other walls were made of cement, just like the rest of the walls in the building, leaving him with an uncomfortable feeling. Even if the neon lights were garish and bright, there still were shadows in the corners of the room, which looked dark and cold even if the whole room was illuminated by light.

_I bet Stryker and his men are behind this wall...Watching... _He felt sick to his stomach, not because he was nervous, no, more because he was angry.

Erik had no clue what they would do to him today, but who cared anyway? They wouldn't be able to break him, never, because he had endured far more than this. Whatever was about to come, he would stand it. For sure.

Oh, but he was so wrong, so wrong again...

Of course he had endured a lot during his time at the camps, for sure he had endured a lot while being under Shaw's hands, and of course he knew pain, but not that kind of pain that he would endure today. He was too confident this time...

He was pushed forward, pressed down onto the chair, his hands and ankles cuffed to the wooden piece of furniture.

_Wood_, he noticed, his heart missing a beat, _shouldn't there be nails too?_

But there were none; he tried to sense any metal with his powers, but the men had already left the room, and with them any piece of metal in his reach. Anyway, he wouldn't have been able to seriously hurt them with the nails. And, he had to stay fucking calm because that would be the only way to get out of here without being seriously harmed himself.

Plan, they still had no plan...They had wanted to make one, today, a plan, while sitting in front of the chessboard... _Such a shame_.

He sighed in frustration as he tried to raise his hands but was stopped by the plastic cuffs around his wrist. _Verdammt noch mal!_

It was then that the heavy door was opened.

Erik, who had been looking on his cuffed wrist, looked up, his eyes widening as he saw who entered the room; It was Stryker, Stryker and Charles.

Erik growled, he couldn't suppress it, and glared at Stryker. His heart began to pound in his chest as he noticed that Charles was rather unresponsive, his head lowered and his limp body supported by two men at his side.

Stryker smiled, widely, and Erik pressed his lips together to avoid a scream of anger. He wanted to ask what they had done to Charles, but he knew they would give him no answer anyway.

Another man brought a new chair and placed it in front of Erik while Charles was led, dragged, to the chair, pushed down and cuffed to it just like Erik. The telepath's head was still lowered, his chin resting on his collarbone and his shoulders slumbed forward, his hair covering his eyes. His breath was shallow and slow, his body totally limp and the only thing that held him upright were the cuffs on his ankles and his wrist.

"What have you done to him?" Erik snarled, finally, because he could not stop himself from doing so. He had to know what they had fucking done to Charles! Erik had seen the younger man in a bad shape the last few days ago, but he looked totally knocked out this time!

"Oh, we've just tested on of our new drugs." One of the man said, was his name, if Erik recalled it correctly. Erik felt his guts clench and he pressed his teeth together as he growled. "You...-what?"

The doctor laughed at the sight of Erik's angry face. "Well, actually it was supposed to be tested on you, but since we need this drug to work on you we thought we use it on the telepath first. We've wanted to have ..." He stopped, seemed to think for the right word."... time, to test it. I think it will be fun." And this bastard actually smiled! Smiled, wide, with anticipation in his dark eyes. Erik wanted to vomit right then and there. _Sick bastard, sick bastard, sick sick sick!_

Teed walked forwards, and Erik could see that the men had brought a machine into the room; it had a monitor and electrodes, which were placed on both sides of Charles' head, on his temples.

"What are you doing!" Erik snarled, squirming on his chair, trying to break free. Teed smiled, smiled and walked towards the door. "Hey!" Erik yelled, leaning forward as he tried to loosen the cuffs.

Teed said nothing as he walked past Stryker, still smiling as he said,"Okay. Test objects are ready."

Erik growled at that, trying to break the hold of the cuffs. "Charles." He whispered, his eyes not leaving Stryker as the man walked towards the telepath. "Charles, hey, Charles!"

But Charles was silent, his head lowered.

Stryker didn't look at Erik as he stopped next to Charles, bending down to his ear level. He whispered something and a small smirk appeared on his lips. Erik's hands clenched into fists.

Stryker leaned upwards, giving Teed a nod as he left the room with long strides. The door of the room fell shut with a loud _click_ and Erik and Charles were left alone.

"Charles..." Erik tried again.

And then Charles raised his head, slowly, his hair still covering his eyes until his head was fully raised. Erik's eyes widened and it nearly knocked the air out of his lungs as he saw into those mismatched eyes, which never had been this cold.

"Charles...?" Erik whispered, trying to lean forwards. The machine beeped and Charles eyes widened, his face an emotionless mask; his face was pale, his eyes glassy, the shadows under his eyes dark.

Erik was sure he screamed, not in pain but rather in surprise as he was suddenly thrown into a mix of colors and voices. Everything was a blur, and his head was pounding as he found himself on his hands and knees in a hallway full of doors.

It was dark, the hallway long, almost endless.

And the doors, they all looked different; there was a big door out of metal, which resembled a the door of a bunker, then there was a white door with filigree patterns and embellishments. Next to the white door was a dark door which had a waved frame, and next to that door was a door made of red glass.

Erik furrowed his brow as he slowly rose to his feet.

Was this...his mind?

A cold shiver ran down his back and he instinctively turned to look over his shoulder.

His breath stuck in his throat as he saw something creeping up to him; it was a person, but he could only see the outlines, which were framed by red and golden flames. He could not see the face of the person, or any features, but somehow he was sure he knew who it was...

And he also knew that he should run now, because he was sure that he had no chance to win a fight against the most powerfull telepath on earth.

Especially not in someone's mind.

Usually Erik Lehnsherr would not run away; he was someone who stood his ground, but he knew when to give up. He knew when things were pointless, and right now it would be pointless to try to convince Charles. Whatever they had done to him, what drugs they had used, he was under their control and he could not hear Erik, else he would have talked to him already.

Erik's heart was hammering in his chest; it made him afraid, yes, afraid, because now it was him against Charles, against his Charles...

Erik was powerful, his mind as well as his body, but he had no chance against Charles, not in any mental plane.

And so Erik began to run, began to run as fast as his long legs would carry him, his eyes searching for a hideout.

Maybe the drugs would wear off soon...

It became colder, colder and colder until he could see his own breath in front of himself, he himself shivering; he was wearing his leather jacket and a nice white shirt and dark brown cotton trousers and those clothes were not good enough to keep him warm. His feet were bare on the black marbel floor.

He did not know if this was his mind, but he assumed it was. He wished he could control it, like Charles could control the astral plane, but sadly Erik was not able to do such things. And so it grew colder and colder..

_Does he want to freeze my mind?_ Erik wondered, his teeth clattering as he took a look back over his shoulder; Charles, the darkness surrounded by flammes, was still following him, though he was slowly, almost too slowly.

A door! He could try to use a door!

Erik stopped, skidded to a halt, and laid his hand on the next best doorknob; the door was made of light brown wood and looked rather normal. The middle bar of the door was made of dark wood, as well as the frame. It was smooth wood, polished and old. Somehow it was reminding Erik of something, but he had not enough time to remember what it was reminding him of.

He had expected the door to be closed, and he was surprised as it actually opened. Hastily he walked inside, closing it behind himself as he leaned against the wood.

_"Close the doors. Always close the doors. You don't know who wants to come in." _Now he knew what Charles had meant.

Erik tried to calm his heavy breathing as he took a look around; he remembered the room now. It was the kitchen of his old flat in Germany where he had lived with his parents and his older sister. His father had repaired clocks while sitting at the small kitchen table and his mother had cooked. Erik could remember the smell of fresh cooked food and the laughter of his father while he talked to his brother, and Erik's uncle, Erich.

He himself had been nine, had been called Max, and had had an eye on a girl named Magda. A childhood crush. It had been such a lovely time...

Erik pushed himself away from the door, after he had turned the lock into place, and walked up to the counter. The counter was made of old wood, it had belong to his grandmother once, and colored with white varnish. His gaze wandered over the kitchen utensils, over the knifes and spices, pot holders, dish towel and finally over the aquarell picture that his grandfather had painted long time ago. It showed fruits in a bowl.

The curtains were checkered in the colors of red and white, and the floor was tiled with blue and white tiles. The tiles had been as old as the house, and they always had been loose. Erik looked down and he blinked; he could even see the small cracks in the tiles. This memory...It was as if he was back, ...

And suddenly, suddenly he realized something.

He was small, smaller than he had been before...

He was nine years old again.

The metal-bender began to shiver as his wide eyes turned to the door.

He could feel the coldness approaching. He could feel a hand on the metal. He could hear that he doorknob was turned.

The door did not open.

_The lock..._

He backed away, his back hitting the wall next to the arched window, his heart hammering in his small chest, his hands clutched into fists. It was night outside.

_Don't come in, don't..._

He knew it wouldn't end well.

The door burst open with a heavy_ crack _and a stream of fire red light lit up the dim lit room.

Erik pressed his small hand against him mouth to avoid a scream. It had hurt...the impact, the broken door...It had been like a stab through his forehead.

Charles entered the room; he was pale, surrounded by golden and red flames, his mismatched eyes cold and glowing. His lips were red, and his dark brown hair was almost black.

Erik knew that he should do something to stop him, to stop Charles, but he had no clue what he could do. He did not want to hurt Charles, but neither did he want to get hurt by Charles. Erik knew that this was his own mind, that he should be strong here, stronger than anyone else, but he was not.

He was afraid. God, he was afraid!

He was not sure if it was Charles' doing or his own feelings.

"Geh!" he yelled. "Lass mich in Ruhe!" He was yelling in German. No wonder, since it was his mind. Sometimes his thoughts were English, sometimes German. "Raus aus meinem Kopf, Charles!"

He said Charles, not Karl, because Charles would always stay Charles, no matter if his thoughts were German or English.

Erik was sure that Charles could hear him, but he was not listening, could not listen; the drugs, it were the drugs. _And the humans..._

_Stryker..._

What had he told him?

Was Charles even aware of what he was doing?

Erik pressed his lips together as he took a step forward. Charles, the young man who was surrounded by the flames in the shape of a bird, watched him, his cold eyes looking straight through Erik.

"Geh!Raus!"

_My mind, my mind, I am in control, my mind._

For a split second it looked as if Charles stopped, as if he was held by the powers of Erik's words, but this moment didn't last long. The telepath lunged forward and Erik stood there, his eyes wide, unable to move, and he was sure that Charles would rip his nine-year old mental body into pieces.

But Charles hadn't aimed at him, he had aimed at the counter next to him.

Erik screamed as a wave of pain hit him, his head throbbing with piercing pain as he sagged to his knees. "Halt!" he screamed, his own voice too loud for his head. "Halt, stop, hör auf!"

But Charles did not stop; he continued, continued to destroy the kitchen, every single piece of it. The glass of the window shattered, the table broke, the counter was smashed, the curtains ripped and burnt, the tiles torn from the soil. His face was cold. He was merciless.

The drugs had taken his will; he was just a puppet, and Stryker was pulling the strings which controlled him.

"Bitte, bitte hör auf, Charles! Bitte lass es sein!"

And Erik sat on the floor, all the while, crying his heart out while the pain in his head became greater and greater. His small hands were clutching his head, gripping his hair while he was crying.

And he could not stop him, could not...

He had to go, had to leave!

The small boy stumbled to his feet and hurried to the door, stumbling over broken wood and tiles as he reached the door, opened it and closed it behind himself.

The lock clicked as he leaned against the door, his breath shallow and heavy. His heart was hammering in his chest, his hands were balled into fists, his skin damp with sweat.

He had never felt so vulnerable...

Erik was himself again, a grown man, leaning against the door. He could hear Charles behind the closed door. The coldness began to reach for him.

Erik pushed himself away from the door. He stumbled down the dark hallway, his eyes searching for an escape. He ran, ran past the doors, door for door for door. Where was the door that would lead out of his mind into the real world?

He had to leave his mind, he had to get out of here, out of this nightmare.

His head did hurt and his heart ached.

Then, with panic, he realized something; he could not remember.

He could not remember the kitchen or the times he had spent there.

That was when he felt tears running down his face; the memory was gone, all the lovely memories of the kitchen were gone.

Erik felt sick.

And it had been Charles, his Charles, who had destroyed it...

And this wouldn't be the last memory that would be destroyed.

Erik could already hear the crack of the opened door. Charles was on his way, haunting him again, and he, Erik, could do nothing to stop him.

And so Erik began to run, searching, opened the next door...

_It will not end..._

* * *

><p>Notes: Erik's uncle was really called Erich. You can read that in 'Magneto Testerment'<p>

Translation:

"Geh!Lass mich in Ruhe!"- Go! Leave me alone!

"Raus aus meinem Kopf!"- Out of my head!

"Geh! Raus! - Go! Out!

"Halt, stop, hör auf" - Stop, stop it.

"Bitte, bitte hör auf, Charles! Bitte lass es sein!"- Please, stop it Charles, please let it be (or, let me be...)


	9. Chapter 8: You don't hate me, do you?

Sorry for the late update, neh, busy busy me. Well, this is more of a breathing Chapter. Hope you like it anyway. See U soon :)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

It did hurt.

It did hurt more like a scalpel in his arm, more than broken bones and more than bruises.

He screamed, and not only inside his mind.

The doors were broken, the wood shattered, the rooms destroyed. Nothing was left, nothing that he would want to remember.

The memories of hanukkah - _gone_.

The memories of his laughing parents - _deleted._

The memory of his first talk with Magda- _no longer there._

The memory of the first encounter with Charles - _blurry._

The memory of his first kiss with Charles - _lost._

They were gone, vanished, black, blurry, faint.

It did hurt.

It did hurt more than anything else had hurt.

It wasn't the pain in his head that made him scream, the pain which was so strong that he felt as if his brain was torn apart, no; it was the pain he felt inside his heart.

It did hurt, his heart. It made him cry out in despair. He all he wanted was his memories, he wanted them back, all the lucky days...They had been the sunray in the ever present darkness of his mind. Now it was gone, the light, and left him inside the darkness of his mind; he felt alone, struggling against the waves of darkness which tried to drown him.

He did not care if they could hear his screams, he did not care if they could see him cry, he was sure they were watching him anyway. Were they proud, to have to power of being able to make him suffer?

Yes, it did hurt, all of it.

But, one thing did hurt the most.

It was when he came back to himself, sweat soaked and panting, and looked up into Charles' mismatched eyes.

It was when he saw tears in them.

It was when he felt that he did not care.

It was when he realized that something was broken, between them.

It was when he realized that he felt hurt and betrayed.

_"I will never enter your mind without your permission, Erik."_ The telepath had said.

The telepath had not kept his word.

Of course it was not Charles fault, the humans had used him, but Erik could not help it; he felt betrayed, betrayed by the man he loved.

It hurt, more than anything else, to know that it was Charles who had hurt him, Charles who had taken away his memories.

Charles, his Charles, the lovely Charles who would never hurt anyone willingly, Charles, who was beautiful and kind hearted and who could love everyone without a reason, who gave everyone a second, if not even a thrid chance.

Charles, who looked so pure and soft.

Charles, who was stronger than Erik, and stronger than those humans.

Charles, who could kill them all, those humans, if he wouldn't cling to his ideals and dreams.

It was not Charles' fault, of course it was not; he was not used to drugs, not resistant against their power.

Poor, naive Charles, whose eyes were glazed because of the drugs, whose skin was pale and whose mouth was a thin red line.

Poor Charles, he was truly sorry, he truly was, but it was not enough.

He had hurt Erik, more than anyone could have.

A lot of people think it is easy to forgive, but it is not.

Not for Erik.

"Iamsorry...Iamsosorry...Iamsososorry..."

He could hear the frantic mumbling, the sobbing, as they were brought back the the cell, and he could hear the grief and pain and sadness and self-disgust in Charles' voice. He did not turn around to look at Charles, because he knew what he would see. He wasn't sure of it would break him even further, or leave him cold, and it made him afraid; he did not want to be an emotionless person, he never had wanted to be one. Maybe he had been a bit too cold sometimes, maybe he had been stiff and rude, but just because he had no clue how to act around people he liked, he loved, people he cared for.

Erik was barely aware of the tight grip on his arms or the way he was dragged down the hallway, he was too busy with being shocked.

Yes, he, Erik Lehnsherr, was shocked, because he had lost memories, a small amount maybe, but still memories, memories which had been important to him.

He wasn't sure what to feel, and he was not even sure if he could feel anything at all.

"I am so...so...sorry..."

Yes, Charles Xavier was sorry, but Erik Lehnsherr could not forgive.

This time they were brought to separate cells. Charles had the cell next to Erik's, and Erik could see him through the glass of the wall, but he made no attempt to stand up, no attempt to go to the wall, instead he was sitting with his back leaned against the opposite glass wall, his eyes somewhere on the ceiling. The light was garish and hot.

Somehow he was sure he could still hear Charles sobbing. Why was Charles crying? Erik should be the one who was crying; it were his memories that had been deleted, not Charles'.

But, Charles was suffering for both of them, as he always did, and so he cried, lying on the floor with his glassy eyes on Erik's unmoving body, silently begging for forgiveness. It was killing him, Charles, that Erik was ignoring him and it destroyed him, from the inside, that he had been the one who had caused Erik's suffering. He was so fragile when it came to his emotions and his love for others, and he could be easily destroyed by destroying others.

The humans must have known it, they must have known how to break him, them.

The time went by, but Erik hardly cared.

He still tried to remember, tried to gather them back together, his memories, but of course it was of no use. There was just blackness, darkness, and the light of the happy days had been taken away.

His gaze was blank as he looked down to Charles. It had been days since Charles had destroyed his memories, but it felt as if it had been mere hours ago. It still did hurt.

Charles was lying on his side, on the cold glass floor of the cell; he was pale, almost white, and his glassy eyes were unfocused and red rimmed. He must have been crying for days, and Erik could still see the tears rolling down his cheeks.

They had drugged him, Erik could see it by the way Charles was looking right through him, by the way he had trouble with his breathing. He was so pale, and had dark circles under his eyes.

He hadn't slept.

Charles' hair was a mess of dark, unruly curls; they were a stark contrast to his skin and gave him an even sicker appearance. To Erik he almost looked like a doll made of porcelain, something that was breakable like glass. The light in his glassy mismatched eyes was surprisingly bright.

_He is close to loosing it_, Erik pondered. _They've managed to tear at his mental shields_.

Erik was far away from being broken, because he once had promised himself one thing; there might be people who tried to break his spirit and mind, but they would never break his will. And surely they would never be able to take away his pride.

He would not break, that was his promise to himself.

Of course he knew how hopeless the situation was, but he would refuse to give in.

He was strong. He would not give up. Never.

But, Charles would.

Charles was strong, of course he was, but they had found a way to hurt him. It was just a matter of time until the Phoenix would break free.

They wouldn't survive it, the rage of Phoenix. No one would survive it.

Erik had felt it, once, months ago, and he had seen what the Phoenix was capable to do. He was not afraid of the human, god, those ridiculous beings, no, he was afraid of the Phoenix.

Erik closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the cool glass wall.

He could hear the steady pulse of his own heartbeat. It was quiet here, too quiet, without Charles.

A leaf...A blue leaf of pulsing blue light in front of his inner eyes. The light of the leaf became brighter, until it filled out his whole vision.

He had to blink several times to get used to the bright light, and as he opened his eyes he stood on a meadow. The wind was soft, the air warm, the sun bright and the sky blue. He was back in the astral plane. He wasn't surprised, no, he only had thought that the memory of the leaf had been destroyed as well as the others.

Immediately his gaze swept around to look for the mop of brown hair. He found Charles lying on his back, somewhere near the trees in the high grass.

Erik's steps were slow as he walked up to the telepath, who made no movement. "I knew I would find you here." The metal-bender said as he stopped next to the telepath, his hands in the pockets of his trousers.

Charles' eyes were closed, his face pale and his red lips pressed together into a grim line. "I knew you would know." was his answer. He opened his glassy eyes, looking straight into Erik's as he continued to speak, his voice broken and unsteady, almost sluggish. "You can't imagine how sorry I am." The druggs, they even worked in the astral plane.

Charles' lower lip trembled, a sign that he was close to tears, but he did not cry. He had cried enough the last few days. He tried to be strong, he always tried, and he did well; Charles wasn't weak, he was just too emotional sometimes. He was never good in hiding his emotions, unlike Erik, who could hide his emotions very well, besides his rage...

"I know." Erik answered, his voice shallow and maybe a hint too cold. He couldn't help it. Charles tried to smile apologetically, but he failed. His smile was rather sad.

"I can fix it..." Charles mumbled, closing his eyes again as if he was too tired to hold them open. "I..I can fix it Erik, I can repair your mind, I can give you back what they forced me take away from you..." His voice was shaky, slow, and it seemed to be difficult to speak.

Erik was quiet, but that was alright, because Charles was talking. "I..I felt it...you know? What I did to you..The pain you felt as I...destroyed your most precious memories..." He took a deep breath, trying to steady his labored breathing. "I was not strong enough...The drug, I..I couldn't fight it...I am so, so sorry, Erik...I truly am." He was trembling, his gloved hands balled into fists. He loved them, those fingerless gloves.

Erik stood there, his back turned to the sun, looking down at his boyfriend, then, after several minutes, he sighed and sat down next to his trembling telepath. Charles' eyes were still closed but he turned his head to Erik.

"I know that you are sorry." Erik answered, his voice calm. Somewhere in the distance they could hear a bird singing. "But I don't know if I am strong enough to forgive you."

Charles laughed, a sad and shallow laughter, as he opened his mismatched eyes. "I never expected you to forgive me, dear, because I knew that you wouldn't. I don't...don't blame you. "

No, instead he was blaming himself, as always.

"Don't get me wrong." Erik's gaze wandered over the small hills in the distance. Was this really the same astral plane? He couldn't remember the hills. Maybe Charles had created them. "I try to forgive you. It wasn't your fault, not really, and I do know that, but..." He trailed off.

Charles sighed as he turned his head to look at the sky. "I know what you mean..." Of course he did, he always did, because he was Charles Xavier, and Charles Xavier knew everything about others. Mostly.

"You're blaming yourself." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

Charles chuckled dryly as he brought his right hand up to his forehead. "Yes. I do." There was no point in lying, Erik knew him.

Erik hummed, but said nothing.

There was silence, for several minutes, until Erik decided to speak. "We have to go."

Charles' eyes turned to Erik. "Go?" He asked, slowly. "How?"

Erik furrowed his brow, then he gestured with his hand in the air. "We've managed to enter the astral plane, right? So why don't we escape? Right now."

Charles took a deep breath, shaking his head while he did so. "No, Erik, that's impossible. We might be able to enter the astral plane, but we are not able to transfer our real bodies into it. "

"But, you are able to manipulate psionic energy. " Erik almost interrupted him.

Charles was quiet for mere seconds, then he shook his head again. "I am able to manipulate it, that's true, but...this, here, we both, we are our minds. Our bodies would stay behind, because I am not able to transfer their substance into psionic energy."

Erik snorted, clearly disappointed, as he propped his head on his folded hands.

"I think.." Charles said, his voice low. "I think the Phoenix could do it. Maybe."

Erik's head spun around, his eyes narrowed. "Don't you dare to even consider it!"

Charles winced visibly, then he turned his head to Erik. "I wouldn't dare, but I have to consider it."

Erik snarled, his eyes angry and his face a grim mask. "You've seen what the Phoenix has done to you! It has nearly killed you once! Do you really want to be killed by it?"

"Of course I don't want to be killed!" Charles snorted, but he sounded tired. "I just said that I have to consider it. We don't have many options, don't we?"

Erik huffed, but was quiet.

"I will give them back to you." Erik blinket against the sun, then turned his head to Charles, who watched the clouds. "I promise you...as soon as we're out of here, as soon as I feel stronger, I will give them back to you. "

Charles' shoulders were tense, his tongue darting out to lick over his lower lip. His voice was small as he began to speak, small and almost barely audible. "You don't hate me, Erik, do you? You still...You still love me, right?"

It had to be the drugs, else Charles would never ask such a question. Erik felt rather shocked to hear it, because he had never expected Charles to ask something like this. He had never even throught about such a question. It felt like a slap in his face; did he really appear that angry that Charles feared he would stop loving him?

The metal bender leaned down until his head was over Charles'. "You stupid idiot." He mumbled, chuckling slightly with a small smile on his lips. Charles furrowed his brow, his glassy eyes searching for a hint of emotions in Erik's grayish eyes. "Of course I still do love you, and I will do so till the end of our days, so stop asking stupid questions."

Charles' eyebrows shot up, a relieved smile on his too red lips. "Okay." His voice was soft now, tired, and still sluggish.

Yes, Erik would love Charles, forever, maybe, maybe not, but for now he loved him, more than himself, even if he had done something which was unforgivable. Erik would start to trust him, again, and Erik would stop pouting, maybe, and he would get his memories back, for sure.

Still he felt horrible as he thought back at the mess that Charles had made, as he thought about the memories which were now lost. But, he had to focus on the present, on their escape, on Charles.

It would be alright.

He hoped it would be alright.

He knew it might end in a disaster, but they had survived one already, so why not surviving another one?

Erik would not start to cry about his past, he would not cry about his lost memories, he would not cry about the possibility of being held here forever. He had to focus, had to gather strength.

Erik laid down next to Charles; the grass was warm from the sun, which shone bright and warm onto their skin. It smelled like hay and fresh grass, like summer. Bees were humming in the air, birds chirping, the trees rustled in the wind.

It was so peacefull.

He could feel Charles' hand over his own, squeezing it slightly.

"I want to go home, Erik.." Charles' voice was just a whisper, small and low, almost swallowed by the rustling trees.

"I know, Charles." What could he say? He couldn't lie, wouldn't.

"Do you think we'll make it?" The telepath asked sleepily.

"I hope so." The metal-bender answered calmly. He was rather sleepy now himself, causing him to close his eyes while listening to the humming bees and Charles' soft voice. The sunlight was red against his eyelids.

He must have fallen asleep, because as he opened his eyes he was back in the cell. He was not alone though; three soliders and Mr. Sherman stood in front of him.

Sherman wore a wry smile on his lips, a cold smile with contempt in his eyes. "Test object number two is awake." Erik felt a cold tingle down his spine, but managed to glare at the tall man. "Bring him to room number 143. Agent Stryker is waiting for us."

The soliders nodded obediently while Sherman left the cell. Erik was yanked upwards, struggling, but was held still. As he was dragged out of the cell his head turned to the side to look at Charles, but Charles' cell was empty.

And suddenly Erik had a very bad feeling...

He tried to free himself several times, struggling and kicking while he was dragged down the hallway to room number 143.

Eventually they cuffed him.

The metallamps above them creaked dangerously, but the soliders ignored the warning sign. _Calm yourself_, Erik thought bitterly while he pressed his lips into a thin line.

Soon they stood in front of the door to room 143. Erik swallowed as he saw the heavy stone door, which was more round than angular.

"Finally you are here." Sherman walked past them to open the door with a button next to it. "Stryker is waiting already. He is eager to build the machine."

To build the machine..

Something in Erik's head clicked, and his eyes went wide as he realized why.

Charles had told him...

_Cerebro..._

They were trying to rebuild Cerebro, and they would force Erik to help them with his powers.

Suddenly his throat felt very dry.


End file.
